I was taken by surprised when I spoke with an elderly Indian man. Each time he acknowledged my questions, he shook his head from left to right, when he should be nodding by lowering and raising his head. All of us nod our head as in agreement and shake to determine disagreement in all discussion. When he shook his head, I thought he wasn't sure. Until he opened his mouth with an affirmative yes and still shaking his head to confirm his certainty with me. To make sure he was agreeable and understood my statements, I told him to speak verbally rather than applying his head language. The nodding and shaking were confusing with our discussion. Later I was told, most typical Indian shake their head for 'yes' and also for the 'no' as an answer. I call this as Indian head shake which other races can't act. If you don't believe, try to move your head from left to right and see whether you can say with 'yeses' comfortably at the same time. Perhaps our logical left brain isn't trained to do so. This is the funny part of life which most of us don't realise. So the next time, when you speak to an Indian, be careful with his nod or shake of his head. To you may be is a 'no' but to him is a 'yes', coz it has double meaning in his language.
Oprah Windfrey - "Turn your wounds into wisdom."
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