Words That Make Us
Two teachers from very different cultural backgrounds share their thoughts on the power and impact of words in shaping our identities, beliefs and experiences. Each episode focuses on a different word and through a range of readings, poems and texts the pair explore how these words have had an impact on their thoughts, emotions and actions.
Episodes
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Home”. Listen to them discuss what constitutes a home and the feelings that come up around the concept of home. Which nationalities and gender tend to own their homes? How can you Feng Shui your home to protect its Qi/Chi? What do stoics say about homes? There are some varied songs and poems by Rumi, Gibran, Mahmoud Darwish, Clive Gregson, Curl...
Season 2, episode 15:
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Sickness”. This promises to be an episode of fun discussions, varied readings of pain and hilarity, and a few statistics to boot! They discuss questions such as: why do men not go to the doctor’s? Can prayer really relieve pain? What poems, depressing and funny alike, have they found for you? And what are some funny storie...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Cake”. Listen to them as they discuss their cake eating and baking preferences all while discussing “Let them eat cake!” and why baking shows became so popular. Would you call the sweet little baked goodness Jaffa cake or biscuits? Why does it matter? And of course, here is some poetry in there for you!
No one said “Let them eat cake”!
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Betrayal”. Listen to them as they discuss the different types of betrayal whether in relationships, in a relation to one’s country of oneself. They discuss statistics about cheating from different countries as well as how it is regarded in stoicism, the Quran and the Bible. There is poetry from different eras and perspectives too!
Countries wit...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Sarcasm”, or should we say wit? Humour? Verbal irony? Listen to them as they discuss the nuances in these terms all while reading poetry, research and some (soft) science and statistics.
Culture and Social Status
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0163853X.2023.2252695#abstract
A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor Pe...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Trees”. Listen to them as they discuss the fascinating mechanisms trees use to grow and survive. What are the oldest trees in the world? Which countries have the most trees and which countries are planting and cutting down trees? How do trees appear in religion, culture and literature? All these questions (and many more) will be answered.
When ...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Patience”. Listen to them as they discern one type of patience from another. Can one be stoically patient in one context and impatient in another? Is patience always a virtue? What can we do when we feel impatient? What have poets from different cultural backgrounds got to say about patience?
Dictionary Definition
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Light”. Listen to them as they discuss how light is perceived in different cultures. What is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and how does it affect us? How did ancient peoples explain the sun and other light-related phenomena? Some great poetry awaits you!
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Doubt”. Listen to them as they discuss the useful and not-so-useful manifestations of doubt. They discuss Impostor Syndrome and why it might be more prevalent in females than in males and talk about ways to alleviate self-doubt and its negative impacts. They have some powerful poetry for you too.
How to overcome self-doubt:
After a short summer break, Rama and Tony are back with you with a new episode on this episode of the topic of “Water”. Listen to them as they discuss the different effects of water on us as humans. They discuss the many ways water has been used in different analogies attempting to describe the human experience. How does water feature in Christianity and Islam? What do stoics and mystics say about it? And of course, how does water ...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Stationery”. Listen to them as they discuss what stationery items mean to them as teachers. There are some interesting facts and statistics about stationery that might surprise you. What are the most stolen items of stationery? Tony also reads you poetry about stationery which we hope you enjoy!
Stealing stationery from work
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Lying”. Listen to them as they discuss the different types of lies people tell and why we lie. Which nations lie more than others? Which gender? Should one always be honest and what are the most common lies people tell?
Which country lies the most
https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/the-most-dishonest-country-is
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Football”. This episode was recorded during the European Championship and it spurred a conversation about why men are generally more enthusiastic about football than women. How is women’s football doing in terms of equality, support and funding? What is the Mohammad Salah effect. They discuss their findings on the history of the game and some i...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Hair”! Join them as they discuss what different hairstyles might say about us, hair loss, wig history and growing market. Should hair be covered? Shampooed? Cut? They read you poetry too!
Alain de Botton on boldness and hairstyles:
https://www.theschooloflife.com/article/why-we-think-so-much-about-our-hair/
For Anne Gregory by William Butler ...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Cats”. Listen to them as they discuss their experiences with cats. Rama reads some research about the health benefits of having cats, while Tony counters by reading statistics and other science about cat owners. How do different cultures see cats, especially black ones? Which countries have the most cats and which countries are restricting cat ...
In this new season of The Words That Make Us, Rama and Tony attempt to shorten the episodes. Listen to them as they discuss the topic of "Shoes". They tell you a little about the history and trends in shoes. Which shoe brand generates the most profit and what are elevator shoes? What does your choice of shoes say about you? There's a story and some poetry about shoes in there too.
Interesting facts and the earliest shoes:
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Food”. Listen to them discuss the foods of their childhoods and respective countries. What are some statistics about meat and other foods around the world? How is food seen in stoicism, Islam and Christianity? How is the food industry evolving to keep up with modern trends? They also share with you some poems about food.
Trigger warning: If you...
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Holidays”. Listen to them as they discuss the different types of holidays and holiday makers. Which are the most visited countries? Which countries make the most revenue from travel? What is “Paris Syndrome”? What are some poems about travel and the feelings it conjures.
Country tourism revenue and statistics:
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “dreams”. Listen to them as they discuss the meaning of dreams and why women dream differently (and more) than men. How do dreams appear in Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and Sufism? What are the most recurring dreams? Of course expect some poetry too.
The story of Prophet Yusuf in the Quran:
In this episode of the "Words That Make Us" podcast, Rama and Tony discuss the topic of “Teachers”. Listen to them as they discuss their experiences with teaching both as students and teachers. They read a range of humorous poems and share some research about teaching.
My Teacher Wasn't Half As Nice As Yours Seems To Be by Roald Dahlhttps://www.poemhunter.com/poem/my-teacher-wasn-t-half-as-nice-as-yours-seems-to-be/
Napoleon BY MI...
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