Dear Vishvashanti,
You were born! Happy birthday! I still remember the day that your mother told me she wanted/was ready to have a child. My response was “me too!” and that was how it began. And now, in what seems like a flash, here you are in front of us, a tiny human with your own needs, feelings, desires, personality. You are only five days old but in this time we have watched you achieve your first cry, your first meal, your first pee/poop, your first diaper change, your first vaccine, your first book reading –– so many firsts, so many achievements! In no time at all, you may be off to college or whatever you decide to do (who knows what the world will look like in 18 years?), and again it will have felt like a flash. And to imagine, we all started out like how you are now… Let me tell you that like your grandparents were there in our time, we are here for it all. We will be here for you throughout all of your achievements and firsts — your first smile, your first words, your first day of school, your first bike ride, friendships, crushes, heartbreaks, graduations, writings, and so much more.
You were born at 1:45am on May 26th, 2023, weighing 6 pounds 5.2 ounces, and measuring 20.5 inches. Fortunately there were no complications with the process, but it was still hard for your mom. Watching her go through labor (not to mention the 9 months of gestation before that) was difficult to say the least. Her water broke on the 25th at 3am and we went straight to the hospital. She labored naturally for 12 hours, after which we decided we needed a little boost and she got a minimal Pitocin intervention. The Pitocin gave her extremely intense contractions, and because we had already not gotten sleep the night before, after about 3 hours of those contractions, she realized she was too tired to keep enduring the pain of those contractions for much longer. It took her some time to accept that it was ok to get an epidural, but that is a story I’ll let her tell you herself. She finally opted for an epidural and then the journey was smooth until she was dilated to 10 centimeters. After that, it was a matter of pushing pushing pushing for over 2 straight hours (!) without a break to get you out. Your mom put in so much effort to push, more of a workout than she’s ever gotten before. And she works out regularly. I hope that in due time, you recognize what your mom had to go through to give birth to you, and that you honor that sacrifice in your future rituals/religion. After a lot of pushing, your forehead got caught on her pelvic bone for a while but with one eventual push your head turned and out you popped! It was such a wonder, an awesome sight to behold your birth. I am so privileged to have been there to witness it. And I am so proud of your mother for carrying you and delivering you safely and well, and I am grateful to her for being your mom.
It took a long time for me to think of your name. There was a lot of pressure on me as a Sanskritist to find the “right” name or a “good” name – everyone kept saying to me “oh, we can’t wait to see what name you come up with!” and I thought it was important for me not to disappoint. Initially we liked simple names like Prashant and Anuraag, but when we made the mistake of sharing those names with the family early, we got a million opinions on them and decided (a) not to go with those names and (b) not to tell anyone the name we chose until you were born. We thought hard about our criteria for naming you, which was basically that your mom should be able to pronounce it and that it should be meaningful, something for you to aspire to. I was inspired by ancient philosophers’ names like Dharmakirti, Shantideva, etc. and I wanted to find something that sounded ancient, but that also had a kind of modern vibe, or a convenient short form. Many names were rejected on the grounds that they were too hard for your mom to say. But after a lot of research and thinking and trying to find inspiration all over the place, your name finally came to me in a flash of insight rather than something I found or constructed. When I finally told your mom one day, “I think I found the name – Vishvashanti!” she said it perfectly, I explained the meaning to her, and we knew that was the one.
Speaking of the meaning of your name, here is the message we sent to our family and friends about your name once you were born:
Dear _____, introducing you to Vishvashanti Kublall Khanna! Born at 1:45am on 5/26/23 weighing 6lbs 5.2oz and measuring 20.5”. Mom and baby are healthy and happy.
Vishvashanti literally means “world (vishva) peace (shanti)” but when it becomes the name of a person, it can mean “One by whom peace is brought to the world” or “One in whom the world gains peace”. It also means “One who makes peace with the world” and “One whose surroundings are peaceful.”
Nickname would be Vishva, or Vishu, or even shorter just Vish!
Kublall is Prea’s dad’s name, and it means “loved by all” from the Urdu “khoob (a lot) laal (love)”.
As for your middle name, your mom wanted to honor her dad, and I thought that was a beautiful thing. I hesitated initially because “it wasn’t Sanskrit”, but finally I realized that I was actually hesitating for no good reason: it was really because I didn’t want to relinquish control. And when I did relinquish it, I was much happier, and your name ended up much better. I chose the first name, and she chose your middle name, and together, they form a beautiful meaning. Your history is multifarious, more complex than ours, and we both want all of it to shine in you.
Before you were born, your Nani came to stay with us for some days to take care of your mom in her final stages of pregnancy and to take care of you in your first few days of life. This was a godsend for us because it allowed us the mental space to prepare for your arrival. When your mom went into labor, we called your Amma and Baba and they came for a couple days to welcome you home from the hospital. As a special surprise, your Chacha and Chachi also arrived to say hi to you! In your first few days of life, you have been held by almost everyone in your immediate family. Imagine how loved you (and we) are, that people came from all corners of the country just to meet you upon your arrival into the world. What a blessing!
Meanwhile, we’ve been in constant contact with your godparents Alex and Imma across the pond in England. They are so supportive and loving, it is amazing. We have a wonderful network of communication because they too have a son who is only a few weeks old, Leon. Your godsibling. He is just 6 weeks older than you! I can’t wait for us to do things together like family trips and visits, and I can’t wait for you and Leon to adventure together without us when you are old enough. I didn’t know much about godparents/godsiblings before, but now that I see the concept in action, it is really a beautiful thing. I am Leon’s godfather too, so between us, it is quite a tight bond.
Yesterday we had your first doctor’s appointment, where you got the Hepatitis B vaccine, and we got heaps of advice about things we should be doing now. Since you don’t know about night and day, we have to establish a routine with you to teach you about that. Since you have no neck control right now, we have to do tummy time to help you with that (as well as to help you not have a flat back of the head). You are already able to pay attention to high-contrast books, which is so much fun to watch. There is truly so much to do now!
Just today your umbilical cord fell out of your belly button. We are planning to bury it in Varun’s Grove – the cluster of 3 cherry blossom trees in the front of our yard – because as the saying goes, you always come back to where your navel string is buried. We hope that you will remember this place fondly in your memories and return here from time to time as you go off on your own adventures that take you far and wide.
With pure joy and love and blessings and awe-struck wonder,
Dad