History is always written by the victor

Each of us probably believed in Santa Claus until we were 7 years old and realized it was too good to be true or our parents had come up with another crafty lie. But it wasn't a new lie, it had been passed on down the generations and fooled everyone.  The name Santa Claus has evolved from the Dutch words Sint Klaas which meant Saint Nicholas. He was a monk born in a city near Turkey and was known for his magnanimity. He distributed his inheritance and dedicated his life to the poor. One of his famous legends tells us about his generosity wherein he delivered 3 bags of gold to a despairing, indebted father as the dowry for his 3 daughters, and saved them from prostitution.  For scores of years, children received their presents from St. Nicholas.  But in the 15th century the Protestants argued against the veneration of priests and saints, his popularity diminished. Now the children had no one to give them their annual gifts, so the onus fell on Jesus. Though modern-day rese...

Imagine, having the power to destroy your enemy just by pressing a button but choosing not to, even when 2 of your companions are resolved to do so. This is a true act of courage, integrity, and humanity. Vasili Alexandrovich Arkihpov went through the same situation and came out as batman the man who saved the world from the brink of eternal destruction. His spontaneous decision of choosing not to launch a nuclear weapon on the US saved mankind and the whole world should be thankful to him.  Vasili was aboard a submarine during the Cuban missile crisis during which the Soviets had deployed some nuclear weapons in Cuba, as a counter to the nukes placed in Italy and Turkey by the USA. The American weapons were directed at Moscow during the Cold War. While the Soviets and the Cubans argued that the sole purpose of the missiles was defense, the Kennedy government readied itself for Nuclear war. The American military raised itself to DEFCON 2, which is the second-highest level of milit...

Interesting fact : After the 2002 Gujarat riots, countries like the US and the UK banned the chief minister Narendra Modi from entering these nations for his condemnable and irresponsible handling of the riots. This ban wasn't revoked until he was nominated as a candidate for the Prime Minister of India.  Hindu-Muslim violence has persisted in India for long; every time status quo ante bellum seems to re-establish itself, a new case of an egregious pogrom emerges and haunts the whole nation, for a brief span. It is widely seen, that the brunt of the violence and assault is faced by the minorities and a political hand is always involved in such an orchestration of organized crime.  Back in 2002, when Narendra Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat, a spiteful rumour spread like a wildfire and brought fresh riots to the Muslim town of Godhra. As a train of Hindu pilgrims was halted at the Godhra station, the Hindus coerced the Muslims to chant hindu mantras. Later, the engine of...

The Demolition of the Babri Masjid and its Aftermath As old as the Mughal Empire, the Babri Masjid was a venerated place of worship for the Muslims. The first Mughal emperor, Babur looked after its construction and hence the temple got its name. Situated in the holy town of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, it had endured centuries of rain and rifts to stand strong for the worshippers. But on 6 December 1992 when some notorious Hindus climbed the mosque's domes, it was a matter of hours until the domes would fall and with it bring along the fall of secularism in India.  Sacred Hindu texts assert that God Ram was born in the city of Ayodhya and the site of the mosque was the actual site of His birth. Though there is no evidence to prove these claims (as Ram is a mythological figure, not a historical one), it is further disputed that Babur destroyed a Hindu temple at that site and built a mosque. In 1948, as the desire for a Ram temple at his birthplace started becoming more prevalent and a ...

The Anti-Sikh Riots of 1984 The story began in 1972 when the Congress Party won the Punjab assembly elections and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) was defeated. The Congress was in power at the center, as well, with Indira Gandhi leading the government. The SAD had put forward some political demands in the Anandpur Sahib Resolution which sought to make Punjab more autonomous and only leave matters like defense with the center. Punjab had lost 2 of the 5 rivers it is named after to the Partition and had to share the rest 3 with Haryana and Rajasthan; Punjab wanted a bigger share of the water. Moreover, they demanded the city of Chandigarh be returned which was being shared with Haryana.  Congress dismissed these demands citing that other states need to give permission to them, too. Twice had the Indira government made a decision but those were not accepted by the SAD. To make a singlehanded decision again which would not resolve the issue would simply have been unwise. Meanwhile, in Pu...

Mongol leader Genghis Khan (1162-1227) rose from the ashes of the previous generation to establish the largest interconnected empire in history. After uniting the nomadic tribes of the Mongolian plateau, he was the only one able to successfully conquer major chunks of central Asia and China. His descendants further expanded the empire, advancing to far-off places as Poland, Vietnam, Syria, and Korea. At the peak of their legacy, the Mongols were able to easily control 12 million contiguous square miles, an area around the size of Africa. He was able to grant religious freedom to his subjects, abolish torture, encourage imports and exports, and also created the first international postal system. Genghis Khan made the impossible possible by conquering more than twice as much land as any other person in history, bringing Eastern and Western civilizations into contact in the process. Did you know?  Mongol leader Genghis Khan never allowed anyone to paint his portrait, sculpt his image,...

Arguably, one of the best shows to be ever made, Game of Thrones followed the stories of various rulers vying for power over the fictional continent of Westeros. The complex world of GOT was first discovered by our world in the series of novels named A Song of Ice and Fire, written by George R. R. Martin. The show reached every pinnacle of success and fame but very few people know about the fact that GRRM's exquisite world is based on the War of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought for the throne of England.  Fought in the 15th century, the conflict was initiated by the death of the ruler King Edward III and the instant succession of his grandson, Richard II, as the ruler. Edward's eldest son had already died before the death of his father. Passing of the throne directly to the grandson enraged the four other sons of Edward. This complex kerfuffle of inheritance guaranteed a tussle within the family and various generations began claiming the right to the throne. Richard was...