Namaste: A Greeting Gone Wrong

Namaste everyone,

When you travel in the western world and tell people that you come from India or when you meet someone who has got some introduction into yoga, they often say 'Namaste' at the end of the conversation just like they would say 'goodbye'. I have tried to ignore it for a very long time but now I have decided to put an end to this misconception about the term and its use.

Namaste, which is also called Namaskar or Namaskaram, is a greating performed when you are meeting someone, or written at the beginning of a letter while addressing the person.  The spoken word is always accompanied by the folding of the palms. You always say 'Namaste' when you meet a person but you do not need to say it at the end - just a simple 'goodbye' with the folded-palm gesture is sufficient.

Through the use of this term you show respect to the better nature of the person concerned or to the divine spirit inside him. Hindu philosophy believes that every human being has a divine spirit inside them, and 'namaste' is the term with which we show respect or bow to that spirit. Mostly younger people say it first to an older person while a host says it first when meeting a guest.

The folding of the palms is done by joining the palms together with fingers pointing upwards, placed in front of your chest. This always accompanies a 'Namaste'. A simple folding of palms without the spoken word also means 'Namaste' but just saying the word 'Namaste' without the folded palms means nothing at all. So most people in the Indian culture say 'namaste' when they meet each other and just fold their palms and say a 'goodbye' when they part. This folding of palms also shows respect for the other person and the higher you place your palms from your chest, the more respect you are trying to show. Thus, many a times while praying to god you put your palms together above your head as high as you can go, to show respect and devotion.

People I meet here who do not know the Indian culture so well shakes my hand and says a 'hello' and at the end of the conversation says a 'namaste' or they write 'namaste' at the end of their email. I do appreciate their effort at trying to know the Indian culture and using it in their daily life - as I believe that 'namaste' is a very beautiful thing to say to a person whom you meet - but this consistent wrong usage does sometimes bother me.

So I request everyone out there who want to use this term, use this term in the right way, the way it is meant to be used - as a greeting when you meet and not only when you say a 'goodbye'.

P.S.: It is surprising that when I searched Google for images related to 'Namaste' most of the images are of women greeting and rarely did I come across the image of a man greeting. Obviously both men and women greet and say 'Namaste' in the same fashion, but somehow there is a lack of images of men greeting on Google. The feminists out there might have something to say about that.

[Image courtsey: Google search]