The spirit of Diwali: Suvir Saran remembers America after 9/11

September 11, 2001 made a patriot out of many a liberal elite of the US. People who never felt they would have a jingoistic moment, found it instantly. Expressions of the type liberals, especially the very educated never felt they would utter - became commonplace. If the last generation may have had the Kennedy assassination to bring them together in some way, those that lived through 9/11, would always have that as a means of coming together. Patriotism and anger were everywhere. [caption id=“attachment_81994” align=“alignleft” width=“300” caption=“Suvir Sen. Image by Suzanne Sen”] [/caption] Even as people mourned the loss of the towers, some had also lost their orientation around the city they called home. I know intimately how I used those towers for figuring out South from North, and being able to guide myself around downtown New York, that does not always follow a grid. There was sadness for the loss of life and anger at the US Government for having failed to keep the country secure. I also feel many are still surprised and shocked at the reactions they felt, and still feel about the heinous acts of that day. Pro-America became an instant calling card, a trump card if you will. People genuinely found patriotism for the first time in their life. Patriotism, and the suffering for some, that it comes packaged with, brought incongruities to the fore. The feelings of pain and loss for one’s country, also made a few realize that something this horrific and ugly must come to have some truth and meaning. It must come to some better end. For some it was a questioning of whether violence and war could be acceptable means of seeking justice after tragedy. For some the road to be taken was the one towards love and hope. Few wanted to find strength to build the bridges needed and not the ugliness of revenge that was a rampant cry of the moment. Others, those considered foreign, and especially those that had seen horror and tragedy in their own lives before were comparatively unmoved by the events of 9/11. They had lost innocence years ago. Having lived through horrors and having watched the world react with cold indifference how could they be horrified? They found sadness in the events. They found sadness in death and tragedy in pain but the past had made them accustomed to such realities of life. Events like those that happened that day can change the way one looks at things. When bad things happen, it is easy for man to turn into an animal of the most vicious type. But the heroes of that day will be the ones who made an attempt to invite forgiveness. But could it find room? Perhaps the horror left too much anger in most hearts. I know many New Yorkers found many ways of renewing their faith through the events that unfurled in the aftermath of 9/11 and through the process of grieving the tragedy. There was, and remains, in many hearts a hope to find new life after the horror that all witnessed. Somewhat like the story behind Diwali. When I look at the floodlights that mark the towers, I am reminded of the spirit of Diwali. The premise of appreciating light through darkness, embracing death in order to celebrate life.   _ Suvir Saran is Executive Chef at Devi in New York, the chair of Asian Culinary Studies at the Culinary Institute of America. His books include_ American Masala: 125 New Classics from my Home Kitchen_._