The French Rendezvous

Exploring French with English and Sanskrit/Bengali cues

For the last four days, have been exploring French. Unable to contain the enchanté in the sylvan woods of language, here I am, writing this post.

This journey.. Picking up cues from the known to the unknown, cognizing the English connections, casual peeking with the lens of Sanskrit, and noticing some liberties of French and Bengali. And this expedition fueled and answered by meta AI.

Bonjour Madame! Bonjour_ Monsieur! Welcome, and Good Day! Bon Voyage and _Bon Appétit! Hope you enjoy this journey!

Let’s savor croissants and cafes, drift through Eiffel and mountains, float along the journey of nature, dab in some philosophy, and rendezvous with the essence of Le French.

Tour de France

Good day! My name is Suzanne. I’m delighted to meet you.
Bonjour! ja mi appelle Suzanne. Enchantée!

Let’s take a Tour de France

The City of Paris with its iconic Eiffel Tower, bustling with fashion, cuisine and culture.

La Ville de Paris
La Tour Eiffel
La Cuisine, La Culture Française

The Seine River flowing through the heart of the city.. the beautiful Alps mountains and the azure Mediterranean sea.

La Rivière Seine
Les Montagnes Alpes
La Mer Méditerranée

**Interestingly, mount/montage also means to assemble, like in English. And Mir/waters seen in Kash-mir or lakes and water bodies in that land.

Let us indulge in the inviting aroma of a local bakery-patisserie. No buffet, Let’s savor each delight à la carte — each item a separate treasure, like a map or a cart, guiding us on a culinary journey.

Le croissant, flaky and buttery
La baguette, crispy and fresh
La tarte, sweet and tangy
Les macarons, delicate and colorful

Each bite a discovery, each flavor a story. Bon appétit!

And brand inspirations

Le Meridien, La Opal, La Z Boy

Science Vocabulary

Some of the diction is quite relatable with Life Sciences and Physics

Sun > soleil > solar
Moon > lune > lunar
River > fleuve > fluid
Sea > mer > marine
Sky > ciel > celestial/ceiling

Voice > voix > vocal
Sight > vue > visual
Time > temps > temporal
Wind > vent > ventilation

Life > vie > vital (or Viva Voice live exam)
Heart > cœur > cardiac
Tree > arbre > arboreal

The Sun and Soul journey.. The light of life

While language and words are tools to express the deepest of thoughts, it is a wonder that so much thought and philosophy went into crafting these words.

A simple ‘Good Morning’ or ‘Good Day’ is actually referring to the wonderful daily journey of our self around the Sun. Bon Jour, Bon Soleil are no different. Celebrating that journey that day around the sun..

The bride of the East eagerly greeting the Morning Sun, and the bride of the West kissing it in the evening.. Well, that was a line from an ancient poem celebrating the passing day..

Soleil meaning Sun.
Surya, Sun, Solar, Soleil connection…
Sun the fuel and light of our Universe… Soul, the fuel and light of our existence.
Soul, Solo, Soliloquy… the self… Journey of the self.
Wow.. the connection occurred to me just seeing the word solo and soleil..

French Expressions in English

In French land, let’s explore Common French Expressions in English.. These have been all along..

Cliché -an overused expression
Faux pas -a social blunder
Flair -a talent or aptitude

Viva — live/life (oral lab exams?)
À la carte -ordered separately
À la mode -in style, or fashionable (model, modern?)
Couture -high-fashion clothing
Voilà -there it is, or look!

Voilà! These French expressions have indeed been all along, adding a touch of elegance and flair to our everyday language.

The X of Y ‘de’ expression

A beautiful way to describe a place, an emotion in french style.

Tower of Eiffel = La tour de Eiffel
Light of Paris = La lumière de Paris

City of Paris = Ville de Paris
City of Lights = Ville de Lumières, which is a common nickname for Paris

And.. ‘et’ bond.. connecting words

The French conjunction ‘et’ is a powerful agent that connects words, phrases, and ideas. The ‘et al’ is perhaps related, a nod to the universe’s fondness for pairs. As we celebrate these harmonious duos, let’s explore some examples:

Lumière et son (Light and sound)
Sel et poivre (Salt and pepper)
Homme et femme (Man and woman)
Soleil et lune (Sun and moon)
Jour et nuit (Day and night)
Noir et blanc (Black and white)
Terre et ciel (Earth and sky)
Bien et mal (Good and evil)
Grand et petit (Big and small)

The Sanskrit verb pronoun Connection

The Sanskrit verbs Ami (I), asti (is), and santi (are) show a striking verb sense similarity.

Mi/am
Ja mi Suzanne (I’m Suzanne)
Ja mi se Pari (I’m from Paris)
Ja mi chante (I sing)

Asti/is
The river is blue -La rivière est bleue
The river is beautiful -La rivière est belle

Santi/are
Flowers are delicate -Les fleurs sont délicates
Flowers are rare -Les fleurs sont rares

Discovering You & We … ‘vous’ ‘nous’

Observe how ‘you’ and ‘vous’ are embedded in RSVP.. [respond if you please] (Répondez s’il vous plaît) and Rendezvous (a meeting rendering with you).

Comment se va (How are you? Katham?)

Let’s move to ‘We’.. It is amazing to see The Vedic ‘nous’ for ‘we’, that is used in pegans for a universal peace and wellness.

Nous sommes unis (We are united)
Nous sommes ensemble (We are together)

French and Bengali — The New age linguistic liberals

While Bengali and French have independent paths, however both being newer languages, have takes some liberties, such as soft sounds, such as dropping superfluous letters in the spelling, such as the ending ‘e’ in baguette, croissante.

And Note the similarity between Bengali ‘tumi’ (you) and French ‘tu’, as well as ‘ami’ (I) in both languages.”

Ja mi Suzanne (I’m Suzanne)
Ja mi se Pari (I’m from Paris)

Sweet reflections..

It is time to bid adieu.. Some simple charming takeaways to treasure:

Mon trésor -My treasure
Mon coeur -My heart (cardio)
Mon amour -My love
Mon tout -My everything (echoing the Sanskrit “tat,” or ultimate reality)
Mon lumière -My light

Talk on Philosophy: The Grand Finale

We’ve reached the final stage of our exploration. Words have been used in an attempt to express the grandest and deepest of ideas.. The Upanishadic quest for life’s purpose. Seize the day, for life is a journey, and time is a river. Embrace the joy of living, and recognize the world within.

René Descartes’ famous phrase echoes: “Je pense, donc je suis” (I think, therefore I am). Yet, is life merely a dream? “La vie est un rêve”.

Doubt, the source of wisdom, prompts us to seek truth within: “Le doute est la source de la sagesse” (Doubt is the source of wisdom).

As we filter out the unknown, the topology, the words and the intent in these verses become familiar and clearer.

L’ignorance est le mal (Ignorance is evil)
La connaissance est lumière (Knowledge is light)
La vérité est en nous (Truth is within us)
Savoir, c’est pouvoir (To know is to have power)
La sagesse est la liberté (Wisdom is freedom) (sage wisdom?)
Le temps est un fleuve (Time is a river)
La vie est un voyage (Life is a journey)

And gems such as
Déjà vu (Already seen) (deja twice?)
Vive la différence (Long live the difference)
Carpe diem (Seize the day)
Joie de vivre (The joy of living)
Raison d’être (Purpose of life or reason for being)

And finally, the humility of acknowledgment: Je ne sais quoi, leading us to the freedom of wisdom, as the Kenopanishad concludes: ‘I know that I do not know enough’

Until we meet again, cheers to knowledge, good health, and joyful discovery! Savoir, Santé, and wishing you charmant encounters!
À bientôt. See you soon.

And the last straw of Sanskrit hat would see it as Cheers! Sante! San Gacchatvam! Let’s march towards felicity and sanguinity!

bientôt! tat kaalena bhavatu! Be ii soon!