god and man
-----------
all the gods of all religions, created the universe, the solar sytem, the earth, the life in it and mankind. surprisingly, only man had the intelligence to figure out the existence of god and each man is trying to prove his belief of god and god's rules i.e. religion is superior. i find this a little funny because if you ask all of them what god is and what is the relevance and meaning of religion, they say all the same things.
so what does each man think about god? to broadly put it, the views are:
I1. god will help you out even no one else in the world would
I2. god will be with you even in the worst of odds or when you are totally alone
I3. pray to god whenever you really need something
I4. confess to god if you have realise you have committed a mistake
interestingly, there are also some adages that apply: (connect with the help of numbering)
I1. god only helps those who help themselves; jiska koi nahi hota uska khuda hota hai
I2. jodi tor daak shuney keo naa ashe, tobey ekla cholo rey (tagore saying in bengali that if no one hears your cry, march ahead alone)
I3. jo sachche dil se maanga jaata hai woh zaroor milta hai
I4. subah ka bhatka agar shaam ko ghar aa jaye to usey bhatka nahi kahte
the tenets about god and the wise sayings are dont seem to go together in the first glance. that made me think about why are we told about two opposing viewpoints all our life. i did some research on theology and applied my own thought to it.
the conclusion i came to was that god is a necessary concept for mankind. we need to accept that man is a social animal and emotions (both base emotions and secondary emotions : refer linked note-yet to be written) are the primary influence in any man's life. so at an individual level, god is required for:
1. reminding man that a specie can survive only if each member wills to survive
2. moral and emotional support in times of loneliness
3. focus his energies and concentrate on priorities for propagating his species
4. controlling contradicting emotions in man to sustain his survival
but there is more to it when we look man as part of a community. most emotions and instincts arise due to existence of other members of the same species around. these are regulated by the use of religion and associated rituals.
1. common religious festivals provide a sense of bonding within the community. this is required because like any other animal, man prefers the feelings of being safe and wanted.
2. man has abstract intelligence that is far higher than any other species. this is the reason why secondary emotions drive most conscious decisions life. to help in this scenario, religion provides universal comparisons and benchmarks for paap, punya, good, bad etc. to aid in decision making and keep the secondary emotions in control.
i remember one shloka of our scriptures that means : do not believe the words of even a reknowned sage even if your mind does let it, but believe the words of an innocent kid if you mind deems it fit.
whether to believe in god is a matter of personal faith. the spirit of what i said above has been repeated in better words in the hymn of creation (Rig Veda Volume 10 Verse 129)
The Original Sanskrit Hymn (with the translation given below each couplet)
nµsad àsãn n¢ sád àsãt tadµnãü nµsãd rájo n¢ vy•mà par¢ yát |
k¡m µvarãvaþ k£ha kásya ÷ármann ámbhaþ k¡m àsãd gáhanaü gabhãrám ||
At first was neither Being nor Nonbeing.
There was not air nor yet sky beyond.
What was wrapping? Where? In whose protection?
Was Water there, unfathomable deep?
ná mçty£r àsãd amÆtaü ná tárhi ná rµtryà áhna àsãt praketáþ |
µnãd avàtáü svadháyà tád ‚kaü tásmàd dhànyán ná paráþ k¡ü canµsa ||
There was no death then, nor yet deathlessness;
of night or day there was not any sign.
The One breathed without breath by its own impulse.
Other than that was nothing at all.
táma àsãt támasà gå×hám ágre 'praketáü saliláü sárvam à idám |
tuchy‚nàbhv ápihitaü yád µsãt tápasas tán mahinµjàyata¡kam ||
Darkness was there, all wrapped around by darkness,
and all was Water indiscriminate, Then
that which was hidden by Void, that One, emerging,
stirring, through power of Ardor, came to be.
kµmas tád ágre sám avartatµdhi mánaso r‚taþ prathamáü yád µsãt |
sat¢ bándhum ásati n¡r avindan hçd¡ prat·ùyà kaváyo manãùµ ||
In the beginning desire arose,
which was primal germ cell of mind.
The Seers, searching in their hearts with wisdom,
discovered the connection of Being in Nonbeing.
tira÷c·no v¡tato ra÷m¡r eùàm adháþ svid às·3d upári svid àsã3t |
retodhµ àsan mahimµna àsan svadhµ avástàt práyatiþ parástàt ||
A crosswise line cut Being from Nonbeing.
What was described above it, what below?
Bearers of seed there were and mighty forces,
thrust from below and forward move above.
k¢ addhµ veda ká ihá prá vocat k£ta µjàtà k£ta iyáü v¡sçùñiþ |
arvµg devµ asyá visárjanenµthà k¢ veda yáta àbabh½va ||
Who really knows? Who can presume to tell it?
Whence was it born? Whence issued this creation?
Even the Gods came after its emergence.
Then who can tell from whence it came to be?
iyáü v¡sçùñir yáta àbabh½va yádi và dadh‚ yádi và ná |
y¢ asyµdhyakùaþ param‚ vy•man s¢ aïgá veda yádi và ná v‚da ||
That out of which creation has arisen,
whether it held it firm or it did not,
He who surveys it in the highest heaven,
He surely knows - or maybe He does not!
He also does not know probably because he does not exist. He is imagination of man at work, working all the time as the brain, heart and breath of man, within each man, to make him live like a 'Man'.
(wrote on 24-oct-2007 after a brief discussion with bhavna on god and belief a day before)
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Social Economics
Whats the big hype about communism and capitalism? somewhere my gut feel tells me that its not the economic theory that i can find my answer. so i looked for facts and started thinking about them.
let me tell you what i thought about. think of a family where one brother earns 2 million. the other is a wastrel. both get 1 million according to the communistic system. the spoilt brother spends all money on drinks, gambling and girls. the good brother works harder, just to gather the money with which he could have bought some comfort for his wife. if he didnt share his hard earned money, he could have kept his wife so happy but he cannot. i could identify with the good brother. one day he quits and the family breaks. the spoilt brother can just beg and die an anonymous death.
this made me very uncomfortable. then i thought from a different angle. what if i was the guy who was on the receiving end of the goods. i pray to god everyday that give me my daily bread, my clothes and my shelter. i wont work at all, but if you have given birth to me fulfil my basic needs atleast. all people should be equal right? i pray everyday on my knees in front of a picture. one day i get the chance to see that the picture is not of the god but of the communist leader of my land. and i am looking like a beggar in front of him. i feel a disgust for my being. in my fit state of mind and with my two hands with me, i wont ever beg, be it god or the government.
even if i look at facts, i see that the average living standard of communist countries is lower than that of capitalistic ones. yes, the variation in the max and min of living standards is not much, say ranging from 48 to 52. coming to capitalist states, the average living standard is high, but with a higher variation, say ranging from 90 to 110. which one do i prefer?
i am surely against communism, but still not in favour of capitalism. money begets more money, that is a fact. and with money comes power to buy anything of value, anything you want giving you greater power. and responsibility doesnt come as a package with it. so there you are, some people with loads of money and power and lack of responsibility. there begins exploitation of the down-trodden. but yeah, at the same time i cant deny that some are very responsible too.
so what model should the society go with??? in simple economics, pick one of the two:
1. lower level of incomes but lesser standard deviation
2. higher level of incomes but higher standard deviation
it definitely has to be a mixed economy. but which component should be more, communism or capitalism? or in simple words, mixed economy prefers equality or efficiency?
what i dislike about communism from the idea i have is the fact that is it overly rosy... everyone works for everyone... so everyone is satisfied and reasonably happy... that is never so... it goes against our instincts... wont you feel the pinch if you see a dumbass person working beside you and earning more just because he has a year more of experience??? there will always exist a problem of "free-riders" in any communistic society... in fact, hard working people are rare and exploited gems in the communistic world where the focus is on receiving value not giving work. NEVER READ A COMMUNISTIC BOOK WITH A PERSPECTIVE EXISTING IN YOUR MIND. THINK ON YOUR OWN. Usually the books are written to play on the mind of the lazy risk averse individual in you who doesnt want to face competition. The language of the books also strive to touch an altruistic chord in you. you might think altruistically, everyone does... but how many of them do not act with selfishness when the time comes?
every individual has some needs and wants... lets look at only the needs, the needs of food, clothing and shelter... all these are material needs... there might be some comforts too, like good education or gifts or toothbrushes say... they are also material... and luxuries like AC cars are surely material... the point to note here is that all three are wants... one want called need is at the level of instincts... the want called comfort is at the level of emotions... the want called luxuries usually are at the level of the mind... we need to satisfy these "wants" in the right proportion
but before we do that we need to accept two things:
1. the basic human needs are material
2. there can be no society without a difference... we are all born with differtial abilities...
now to bring in that proper proportion of want satisfaction, we need money... unless you have money, you cant share it, let alone sharing equally... so the capitalists bring in money... the growth because of efficiency... and when the disparity grows huge... the equality of society kicks in and the money is redistributed... so what happens is cycles of capitalism and followed by communism and again capitalism... in the process look at the average standard of living... it rises continuously due to capitalism... communism just reduces the gap between the min and max of the living standard...
there is this natural equilibrium that comes about... it comes about because the society always shouts for equality but prefers efficiency... the mixed economy has to be more of capitalism, moderated with some amount of communism... selfishness moderated with altruism... efficiency with disparity in control... i call this "societal capitalism", which is again very different from socialism... it is this societal capitalism that we can see all the markets heading towards across the globe.
(Written on 10th October 2007, after a chat with my close friend shaurya. thanks bhavna for inspiring me to write this piece)
let me tell you what i thought about. think of a family where one brother earns 2 million. the other is a wastrel. both get 1 million according to the communistic system. the spoilt brother spends all money on drinks, gambling and girls. the good brother works harder, just to gather the money with which he could have bought some comfort for his wife. if he didnt share his hard earned money, he could have kept his wife so happy but he cannot. i could identify with the good brother. one day he quits and the family breaks. the spoilt brother can just beg and die an anonymous death.
this made me very uncomfortable. then i thought from a different angle. what if i was the guy who was on the receiving end of the goods. i pray to god everyday that give me my daily bread, my clothes and my shelter. i wont work at all, but if you have given birth to me fulfil my basic needs atleast. all people should be equal right? i pray everyday on my knees in front of a picture. one day i get the chance to see that the picture is not of the god but of the communist leader of my land. and i am looking like a beggar in front of him. i feel a disgust for my being. in my fit state of mind and with my two hands with me, i wont ever beg, be it god or the government.
even if i look at facts, i see that the average living standard of communist countries is lower than that of capitalistic ones. yes, the variation in the max and min of living standards is not much, say ranging from 48 to 52. coming to capitalist states, the average living standard is high, but with a higher variation, say ranging from 90 to 110. which one do i prefer?
i am surely against communism, but still not in favour of capitalism. money begets more money, that is a fact. and with money comes power to buy anything of value, anything you want giving you greater power. and responsibility doesnt come as a package with it. so there you are, some people with loads of money and power and lack of responsibility. there begins exploitation of the down-trodden. but yeah, at the same time i cant deny that some are very responsible too.
so what model should the society go with??? in simple economics, pick one of the two:
1. lower level of incomes but lesser standard deviation
2. higher level of incomes but higher standard deviation
it definitely has to be a mixed economy. but which component should be more, communism or capitalism? or in simple words, mixed economy prefers equality or efficiency?
what i dislike about communism from the idea i have is the fact that is it overly rosy... everyone works for everyone... so everyone is satisfied and reasonably happy... that is never so... it goes against our instincts... wont you feel the pinch if you see a dumbass person working beside you and earning more just because he has a year more of experience??? there will always exist a problem of "free-riders" in any communistic society... in fact, hard working people are rare and exploited gems in the communistic world where the focus is on receiving value not giving work. NEVER READ A COMMUNISTIC BOOK WITH A PERSPECTIVE EXISTING IN YOUR MIND. THINK ON YOUR OWN. Usually the books are written to play on the mind of the lazy risk averse individual in you who doesnt want to face competition. The language of the books also strive to touch an altruistic chord in you. you might think altruistically, everyone does... but how many of them do not act with selfishness when the time comes?
every individual has some needs and wants... lets look at only the needs, the needs of food, clothing and shelter... all these are material needs... there might be some comforts too, like good education or gifts or toothbrushes say... they are also material... and luxuries like AC cars are surely material... the point to note here is that all three are wants... one want called need is at the level of instincts... the want called comfort is at the level of emotions... the want called luxuries usually are at the level of the mind... we need to satisfy these "wants" in the right proportion
but before we do that we need to accept two things:
1. the basic human needs are material
2. there can be no society without a difference... we are all born with differtial abilities...
now to bring in that proper proportion of want satisfaction, we need money... unless you have money, you cant share it, let alone sharing equally... so the capitalists bring in money... the growth because of efficiency... and when the disparity grows huge... the equality of society kicks in and the money is redistributed... so what happens is cycles of capitalism and followed by communism and again capitalism... in the process look at the average standard of living... it rises continuously due to capitalism... communism just reduces the gap between the min and max of the living standard...
there is this natural equilibrium that comes about... it comes about because the society always shouts for equality but prefers efficiency... the mixed economy has to be more of capitalism, moderated with some amount of communism... selfishness moderated with altruism... efficiency with disparity in control... i call this "societal capitalism", which is again very different from socialism... it is this societal capitalism that we can see all the markets heading towards across the globe.
(Written on 10th October 2007, after a chat with my close friend shaurya. thanks bhavna for inspiring me to write this piece)
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Defeat
Defeat, my Defeat, my solitude and my aloofness;
You are dearer to me than a thousand triumphs,
And sweeter to my heart than all world-glory.
Defeat, my Defeat, my self-knowledge and my defiance,
Through you I know that I am yet young and swift of foot
And not to be trapped by withering laurels.
And in you I have found aloneness
And the joy of being shunned and scorned.
Defeat, my Defeat, my shining sword and shield,
In your eyes I have read
That to be enthroned is to be enslaved,
and to be understood is to be levelled down,
And to be grasped is but to reach one's fullness
and like a ripe fruit to fall and be consumed.
Defeat, my Defeat, my bold companion,
You shall hear my songs and my cries and my silences,
And none but you shall speak to me of the beating of wings,
And urging of seas,
And of mountains that burn in the night,
And you alone shall climb my steep and rocky soul.
Defeat, my Defeat, my deathless courage,
You and I shall laugh together with the storm,
And together we shall dig graves for all that die in us,
And we shall stand in the sun with a will,
And we shall be dangerous.
~ Khalil Gibran, The Madman, Chapter 22
You are dearer to me than a thousand triumphs,
And sweeter to my heart than all world-glory.
Defeat, my Defeat, my self-knowledge and my defiance,
Through you I know that I am yet young and swift of foot
And not to be trapped by withering laurels.
And in you I have found aloneness
And the joy of being shunned and scorned.
Defeat, my Defeat, my shining sword and shield,
In your eyes I have read
That to be enthroned is to be enslaved,
and to be understood is to be levelled down,
And to be grasped is but to reach one's fullness
and like a ripe fruit to fall and be consumed.
Defeat, my Defeat, my bold companion,
You shall hear my songs and my cries and my silences,
And none but you shall speak to me of the beating of wings,
And urging of seas,
And of mountains that burn in the night,
And you alone shall climb my steep and rocky soul.
Defeat, my Defeat, my deathless courage,
You and I shall laugh together with the storm,
And together we shall dig graves for all that die in us,
And we shall stand in the sun with a will,
And we shall be dangerous.
~ Khalil Gibran, The Madman, Chapter 22
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Shock!!!
Shock!!!
Lush green, beautiful and serene
Is the island in the middle of the sea
It is a marvel of nature built by god
Just waiting to be enjoyed only by me
Lush green, beautiful and serene
Is the island in the middle of the sea
It belongs to me and no one knows
And its my duty to protect it you see
Oh, I just wished it too loudly,
Somebody above must’ve heard it now
But I want to be there so badly
Maybe my lottery ticket gets me there somehow
I was on the balcony of my hotel room
When I heard someone’s wish tonight
What good is my island if no one enjoys it?
I must help this guy come out of his plight!
I wake up next day to a fresh morning,
The lottery result was out too
I again screamed loud enough
“Hey island, I am coming to you”
What better present can I give to this guy
Than giving him what he wants most
As an additional prize on my birthday
I gift him a month to enjoy on the coast
The sand and the sea and the open sky
The flock of birds flying across the setting sun
Nothing to worry about and nothing to care
Throwing my beer can I say, “I AM THE ONE!!!”
The sand and the sea and the open sky
The flock of birds flying across the rising sun
This fellow throws garbage and spoils my land
What makes him think he is THE RIGHTFUL ONE???
Life on this island has been like royal
And no doubt it has been my best week
I speak aloud all and all I want is there
But cleaning up my mess is not what I seek
He just speaks aloud whatever he wishes
And gets what he wants, that I make sure
But what nature built in years, he spoilt in a week
If he doesn’t improve he’ll pay, that’s for sure
It was damn cold today man
Nature seems to be playing games
But I can fight with nature’s unfairness
I shall set some trees to flames
Today I was outraged by his insanity
A bonfire of my trees was made by him
The way he is slowly destroying my island
Slow death is what I declare for him
Oh, I don’t know what kept me asleep
I wake up for the first time watching sunset
No!!! Where are my toes???
A letter says, “That what the crows today ate…”
So, I had drugged his food yesterday
I feel like the protector of this island
A few less grams of his unwanted feet
would now would touch my land
Come out you swine, face me if you can
This is not the way, you deal you coward!!!
I still have my hands you bugger
I’ll show you what I am till you come forward….
Hey, this guy is yelling out now
Why scream your heart our loud, son?
Cant you imagine how the trees would’ve
shouted when you burnt them for fun?
Again I am feeling groggy while waking up
Oh damn, damn, damn… Jeez!!!
Two fingers from each of my hand are missing
Someone please save me, Please!!!
This guy is so foolish, just shouts
And then eats what I give him
Poor fellow, for his stupidity this time
I plan to serve him his own fingers fried
I try to run out of the house,
Shit… someone has locked all doors
I just see a menu card lying on the table
“Fingers Fried” is the only item it shows…
Time has come for me to cast my final blow
He cannot run now and he cannot leave
I have closed all the doors of the house
The plan for his death is for me to weave
I grab the glass on the table for water
I turn the knob and the glass is filled
Without looking I take a sip and … eeks!!!
Someone’s blood has been served to me chilled
I know the psychological effect of fear
For people call me a psychopath
But why don’t these people realise one thing
It is you who’ve chosen to face my wrath
I run to the loo to wash my face
“You drank your own blood sunny”
I glance at the mirror and see my face
“You can free yourself, aint it funny???”
I never wanted to kill this guy myself
Killing himself was what fate had inked
that’s what would help mankind
else nature would make man extinct
I felt someone was laughing at me,
As I was looking at the rope circling
the image of my face in the mirror,
I could only free myself by hanging
I couldn’t help laughing when I
imagine what his state would have been
He had just seen sipped his own blood
How he takes his own blood remains to be seen
How I hung myself and I how long I hung
I simply don’t know, and I don’t care
Was this the way I should’ve been made to realise
Do anything, but with nature, I shouldn’t dare…
This was probably not the right thing to do
But atleast for once I felt almighty
Animals like man spoil their own land
I hope from now on, man really does his duty
I wrote this poem for a few reasons:
- Poems on this topic are rare.
- All poem styles are same, a single flow… I felt it needed some new approach. Hence this simultaneous parallel style.
- Even crimes can be made to sound beautiful. People usually don’t try it because of the inherent bias in thinking.
I am not in favour of any such harsh behaviour as in this poem. So don’t hang me for that!!! :-)
~Som (written in the first week of december 2004, but reactions to this were so harsh that it made me discontinue expressing my imaginations in poetry)
I just need SLEEP
I just need SLEEP.....
----------------------
i sit at the shore, just looking the sea and the sun
i dont even know whether its the setting or the rising one
The sands of time have flowed through my fingers
all this while, i was just busy with the numbers
So many people, and no doubt all of them good
since its between me and the world, bet on the world i would
perhaps its not too late... i can get up and run
but my mind has something else as priority one
all that i just need now is SLEEP...
my name in a Short List, and a rem in EEP!!!
why did i write such an arbit poem, i dont know
if you ever figure that out... do let me know!!!
~Som (written sometime in the first half of november 2004)
----------------------
i sit at the shore, just looking the sea and the sun
i dont even know whether its the setting or the rising one
The sands of time have flowed through my fingers
all this while, i was just busy with the numbers
So many people, and no doubt all of them good
since its between me and the world, bet on the world i would
perhaps its not too late... i can get up and run
but my mind has something else as priority one
all that i just need now is SLEEP...
my name in a Short List, and a rem in EEP!!!
why did i write such an arbit poem, i dont know
if you ever figure that out... do let me know!!!
~Som (written sometime in the first half of november 2004)
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Being Indian
Posted on the orkut community "Indian v/s Western philosophy" on 9 July 2006 by Nipun:
Acc to Pavan Kr Verma, Indians have some distinct characteristics that include:
1. Natural amorality
2. Materialistic pragmatism
3. Propensity for ends (without thought of means)
4. Excessive love for perks of power
5. Dislike for disorder
6. Compromise and self-preservation
7. Ability to retain hope
8. Resilience that comes from being continually exposed to adversity
9. Intrinsically non-violent nature
10. Indifference to sufferings of weak and poor
11. Extraordinary sensitivity to calculus of power
12. Exceptionally hierarchical in outlook
13. Not democratic by instinct or temperament
Comments... anyone?
My response to it on 18 September 2006:
First of all, please let us not equate hinduism and indianness... It might be true, but sometimes it is distracting... The analysis by Mr. Pavan Kumar Verma is excellent. but though he has been correct in his analysis, though there are gaps. At first glance it portrays an each indian as greedy and selfish. True. But it also gives the impression that an indian is very "rational" and unemotional. False. Let me explain.
In the ancient times, the caste system was absent... even in its most primitive form, it was based on occupation... that was rational as it brought structure and efficiency in society... later on it degenerated... caste system became hereditary... the spirit of spiritual and theological argumentation was replaced by later holy books... the rationality was lost in the process...
Next, the family is the basic unit of society in any caste... the family then started being bound more by emotions and external society rules... the family members who questioned society were controlled greatly by the rest of the family, and the tool used was emotions... things started turning dogmatic...
so slowly, the tendency has become more of justification than rational decision making. the "rational unemotional selfish greedy indian" has become an "irrational emotional selfish greedy indian"... this had even been noted by our famous leaders like annie besant... americans and europeans can work and cooperate fully with the people they hate the most if it serves their purpose... but indians must like the people they work with... so much for pragmatism.....
so if you look at the indian society as a whole, it is far from what indian philosophy wanted it to be like... all of us are extremely immoral, but try to show that we are extremely moral... this duplicity has become a part of our character... i might admire a movie heroine for marrying a muslim hero in a movie, but i would probably be dead against my sister doing so...
all i can say is, i wish my analysis is totally false...
Acc to Pavan Kr Verma, Indians have some distinct characteristics that include:
1. Natural amorality
2. Materialistic pragmatism
3. Propensity for ends (without thought of means)
4. Excessive love for perks of power
5. Dislike for disorder
6. Compromise and self-preservation
7. Ability to retain hope
8. Resilience that comes from being continually exposed to adversity
9. Intrinsically non-violent nature
10. Indifference to sufferings of weak and poor
11. Extraordinary sensitivity to calculus of power
12. Exceptionally hierarchical in outlook
13. Not democratic by instinct or temperament
Comments... anyone?
My response to it on 18 September 2006:
First of all, please let us not equate hinduism and indianness... It might be true, but sometimes it is distracting... The analysis by Mr. Pavan Kumar Verma is excellent. but though he has been correct in his analysis, though there are gaps. At first glance it portrays an each indian as greedy and selfish. True. But it also gives the impression that an indian is very "rational" and unemotional. False. Let me explain.
In the ancient times, the caste system was absent... even in its most primitive form, it was based on occupation... that was rational as it brought structure and efficiency in society... later on it degenerated... caste system became hereditary... the spirit of spiritual and theological argumentation was replaced by later holy books... the rationality was lost in the process...
Next, the family is the basic unit of society in any caste... the family then started being bound more by emotions and external society rules... the family members who questioned society were controlled greatly by the rest of the family, and the tool used was emotions... things started turning dogmatic...
so slowly, the tendency has become more of justification than rational decision making. the "rational unemotional selfish greedy indian" has become an "irrational emotional selfish greedy indian"... this had even been noted by our famous leaders like annie besant... americans and europeans can work and cooperate fully with the people they hate the most if it serves their purpose... but indians must like the people they work with... so much for pragmatism.....
so if you look at the indian society as a whole, it is far from what indian philosophy wanted it to be like... all of us are extremely immoral, but try to show that we are extremely moral... this duplicity has become a part of our character... i might admire a movie heroine for marrying a muslim hero in a movie, but i would probably be dead against my sister doing so...
all i can say is, i wish my analysis is totally false...
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
May I think?
May I think?
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I had heard that man is a social animal. True. I had also heard that he thinks and therefore he is. True again. Somehow since I don’t know when, I could not understand how both of them could be true together. If man is to work for society like an animal without questioning, he is no longer thinking. If he thinks that there are better ways for doing stuff than what is currently done in society, he is deemed a rebel and anti-social and many a time called evil.
I was forced to think as to what makes us different from all other animals on this planet, and what exactly makes us human. Is it our instincts? No, we have all the instincts of animals. Is it our emotions? Perhaps I missed one or two but again, animals have all the emotions we display. What is the one thing that we have and animals don’t? It is our capacity to think, the fact that we have brains and intelligence. This is what makes us human. We can make abstractions, logical deductions and inferences. We can decide! But animals also decide. So how are our decisions different from those of animals? It is simply because we can decide with our brains and logic, whereas animals just use their instincts and emotions. But things become a little complicated here. We humans also can decide using our emotions and instincts. So how do we maintain the difference and be humans? Does our complicated society structure help us in our decisions?
I remember the umpteen incidents when I was so happy pleasing everyone and doing things for others. I always shared my chocolate as a kid. I cherished those moments of appreciation and praise. In fact, I wanted everyone to share his/her gifts. I did that because I respected the words of my elders. But there were also times when I was caught between conflicting demands of “other people”. I ended up hurting them anyway or the other. At that time I could think for myself. I could see that what I am saying or doing is correct and what others tell me is wrong. Much of what they told me didn’t make any sense. When any of my friends cheated with me while playing, I used to beat them up. After all, why cheat, and that too with your friend? My maternal grandfather, who is my real-life idol, taught me self-control and simultaneously he taught me to think practically. We are still told that higher marks mean more knowledge and sharpness. I remember avoiding the first rank in all school and college exams on purpose, and still winning academic scholarships that mattered. My parents were sad, but will they not be sadder if I am just a mugging parrot and not an intellectual that I can be? For instance, if I see a girl and I instantly know this is the girl I was waiting for my whole life, why should others tell me I am probably mistaken? They are neither me, nor do they know what I want and nor they are going to live my life.
Consider an example: suppose my parents, wife and children are sick. I don’t have enough money for their treatment. So should I steal? Should I let my parents die? Should I let my wife die? Should I let my children die? Should I beg? Should I just pray and do nothing? Society will never help me decide, will it? It is such moments of time that choose a human from the non-human. In my opinion, the ones who begged or prayed were not human. Humans try. They use their brain and their will and try. What good are the morals taught to us our entire lives then? What good are the society’s ethics if they cannot help me save lives I value?
Some of you may find the above example an extreme case with leading questions. Maybe you are right. But can you be fully sure that the above example is impossible? What will our society do if such a thing happens? Prevent it, or provide help in such cases? In the past few minutes there may be an impression in your mind that I am against society. Then my friend, you were hardly reading with your mind open. Don’t you agree that in your youth days there were times when you thought that this is the way things should be, but you were disappointed? I am just trying to be a youth inside you. Don’t you think there are things that are better in other countries or homes? You have an idea of an ideal society in your mind. Chances are that you have articulated your idea inadequately. Each one of us will have a different idea of an ideal society. We would probably never be able to reach a conclusion on what an ideal society should be. I have loved the colours of our diverse culture and I want it to remain. But even in that diversity, we have always preserved our sense of similarity and our identity. Go to any part of India and you will ever feel you are not in India when you talk to people. That is the India I love, the India of freedom, argument and acceptance.
You must have seen that I have been questioning many things that happen around us. I am happy that I am allowed to question. I follow some of our cultural traditions, like touching the feet of some elders because I was told why it is done. It is because you trust and respect the other person so much that you offer your neck to the other person and he will not kill you. But I don’t listen to things like not going for a haircut on a Saturday. “Something bad will happen” is a ridiculous and laughable reason. I don’t believe Sri Krishna was a god. For me he was a wise human of ancient times, and I try to live by what he said in the Gita, not because I am god-fearing, but because it was sensible. He told us to fight and even kill our family members if they are wrong. If I think my family is wrong, I am not in favour of such extreme steps, but I can at least question and discuss. In this age of modernity and reason, only the things that are rational will survive. This is the same rational society that Swami Vivekananda had envisioned.
~ Som
(Published in Durga Puja Souvenir of Sarita Vihar, 2006)
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I had heard that man is a social animal. True. I had also heard that he thinks and therefore he is. True again. Somehow since I don’t know when, I could not understand how both of them could be true together. If man is to work for society like an animal without questioning, he is no longer thinking. If he thinks that there are better ways for doing stuff than what is currently done in society, he is deemed a rebel and anti-social and many a time called evil.
I was forced to think as to what makes us different from all other animals on this planet, and what exactly makes us human. Is it our instincts? No, we have all the instincts of animals. Is it our emotions? Perhaps I missed one or two but again, animals have all the emotions we display. What is the one thing that we have and animals don’t? It is our capacity to think, the fact that we have brains and intelligence. This is what makes us human. We can make abstractions, logical deductions and inferences. We can decide! But animals also decide. So how are our decisions different from those of animals? It is simply because we can decide with our brains and logic, whereas animals just use their instincts and emotions. But things become a little complicated here. We humans also can decide using our emotions and instincts. So how do we maintain the difference and be humans? Does our complicated society structure help us in our decisions?
I remember the umpteen incidents when I was so happy pleasing everyone and doing things for others. I always shared my chocolate as a kid. I cherished those moments of appreciation and praise. In fact, I wanted everyone to share his/her gifts. I did that because I respected the words of my elders. But there were also times when I was caught between conflicting demands of “other people”. I ended up hurting them anyway or the other. At that time I could think for myself. I could see that what I am saying or doing is correct and what others tell me is wrong. Much of what they told me didn’t make any sense. When any of my friends cheated with me while playing, I used to beat them up. After all, why cheat, and that too with your friend? My maternal grandfather, who is my real-life idol, taught me self-control and simultaneously he taught me to think practically. We are still told that higher marks mean more knowledge and sharpness. I remember avoiding the first rank in all school and college exams on purpose, and still winning academic scholarships that mattered. My parents were sad, but will they not be sadder if I am just a mugging parrot and not an intellectual that I can be? For instance, if I see a girl and I instantly know this is the girl I was waiting for my whole life, why should others tell me I am probably mistaken? They are neither me, nor do they know what I want and nor they are going to live my life.
Consider an example: suppose my parents, wife and children are sick. I don’t have enough money for their treatment. So should I steal? Should I let my parents die? Should I let my wife die? Should I let my children die? Should I beg? Should I just pray and do nothing? Society will never help me decide, will it? It is such moments of time that choose a human from the non-human. In my opinion, the ones who begged or prayed were not human. Humans try. They use their brain and their will and try. What good are the morals taught to us our entire lives then? What good are the society’s ethics if they cannot help me save lives I value?
Some of you may find the above example an extreme case with leading questions. Maybe you are right. But can you be fully sure that the above example is impossible? What will our society do if such a thing happens? Prevent it, or provide help in such cases? In the past few minutes there may be an impression in your mind that I am against society. Then my friend, you were hardly reading with your mind open. Don’t you agree that in your youth days there were times when you thought that this is the way things should be, but you were disappointed? I am just trying to be a youth inside you. Don’t you think there are things that are better in other countries or homes? You have an idea of an ideal society in your mind. Chances are that you have articulated your idea inadequately. Each one of us will have a different idea of an ideal society. We would probably never be able to reach a conclusion on what an ideal society should be. I have loved the colours of our diverse culture and I want it to remain. But even in that diversity, we have always preserved our sense of similarity and our identity. Go to any part of India and you will ever feel you are not in India when you talk to people. That is the India I love, the India of freedom, argument and acceptance.
You must have seen that I have been questioning many things that happen around us. I am happy that I am allowed to question. I follow some of our cultural traditions, like touching the feet of some elders because I was told why it is done. It is because you trust and respect the other person so much that you offer your neck to the other person and he will not kill you. But I don’t listen to things like not going for a haircut on a Saturday. “Something bad will happen” is a ridiculous and laughable reason. I don’t believe Sri Krishna was a god. For me he was a wise human of ancient times, and I try to live by what he said in the Gita, not because I am god-fearing, but because it was sensible. He told us to fight and even kill our family members if they are wrong. If I think my family is wrong, I am not in favour of such extreme steps, but I can at least question and discuss. In this age of modernity and reason, only the things that are rational will survive. This is the same rational society that Swami Vivekananda had envisioned.
~ Som
(Published in Durga Puja Souvenir of Sarita Vihar, 2006)
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