The Perfect Pournima

 This Pournima is indeed perfect. On the one hand, the Indian rover is wandering around the moon surface which proves the supremacy of science. So does the fact that this Pournima moon, this full moon is both the super moon and the blue moon. These two are facts that are explicable scientifically.

Yet this particular poornima has a lot of emotional valency as well. For sure, it is the Rakhee Pournima. It is, however, the Narali Purnima as well. Well, on the full moon day, the sea has high tidal waves. The poets have often used this fact as an image for romantic love.

Well, the sea, like life itself, has multiple facets. For the fishermen, the sea is the source of livelihood. Their daily bread and butter depends on the sea. Despite the climate change, even today, as in the past, the sea is rough since June 7 till now.

 From this day onwards, the sea gets calmer by the day, and the fishermen tribe can re-start riding the waves in search of the sea's abundance, the fish. The process begins with a propitiatory Puja on this Pournima day.

I have two very touching thoughts tucked in to this purnima-saga. The first one is the annual Puja of the sea Papa performed on the Narali Purnima as Raju's professional life as a Merchant Navy Officer is related to the high seas. In his affectionate memory, I keep aside a coconut, with the usual Puja paraphernalia, on the day, and offer it to some water body, a ritual celebrating his selfless, innocent, clean life full of love for his son.

The second memory relates to Aai. Once she turned eighty, for one whole year, every Pournima, each full moon day, she prayed to the moon by offering an actual pranam to the full moon in gratitude to her "Sahastra Chandra Darshan". Her aching knees never came in the way of this simple bowing down to the larger forces that shape our small lives.

Neither of my parents was terribly religious nor ritualistic. In fact, initially, there was not even a proper devhara in their early household. Papa, who appeared religious, was actually an atheist initially,  Aai told me.

Given the difficult times they were made to suffer in the early days of their marriage, they felt the constant lack of a solid support. Hence, for the welfare of their children, the Puja performances entered their lives, and they managed whatever was needful most sincerely! Hence my multiple tributes to their genuine generosity! Long live their sincere memories as perfect as the poornima!

Pratima@Perfection lies in genuineness, devotedness and simplicity.

The Rakhi Day

 Our lives often take tremendous turns and twists. Rather like the tough mountain roads. Yet both, our lives and our roads, wherever they may lead us, always share the point of origin, the place where we began. Let me think of another example, an image to explain what I mean. After the first few sunrays, every day is different. Yet the dawn is common to each and every day, however distinct, right?

The sibling relationship is like that originary point, the dawn of each life. Each day may zoom out differently, and yet the common dawn colours it. The Rakhee Pournima or the Raksha Bandhan celebrates this elemental togetherness that never withers nor wanes.

Apparently, the roots of the special celebration that honours the siblings' togetherness lie in a mythical story. Lord Krishna cut his finger on a blade of the Sudarshana Chakra. Draupadi could not  bear to see the oozing blood. She tore the pallu of her precious saree to tie up his wound. The Lord granted her the boon that this selfless act of love would be remembered  year after year, and hence   the Rakhi festival  gets celebrated each and every year as a token of the brother-sister bond.

Yet another logic behind this ritual is  that actually the festive feel is  not really pan-Indian. Bollywood phillums spread around the good word regarding the brother protecting the hapless sister. Well, in the northern regions of India, given the constant  invasions, the Rakhee thread was a promise that the brother would always protect the sister. The Rakhee festival thus began and spread, it seems.

Whatever its origin may be, the festival frames a bond that binds forever. These days, sisters are hardly hapless damsels in distress. Yet the faith that someone cares for you selflessly and deeply, come what may, is a great solace, especially when your parents are no more.

Actually, the bond so matures over the years that there are no expectations, no demands except the subtle assurance that in this wide wild world, there is this special someone in whose veins courses the same blood, who shared with you your blooming years that shaped you, however/wherever you may flower and fructify!

Forever may live this bond! Let every year blossom again the memories that truly make us! Happy Raksha Bandhan!

Pratima@ For a sister, brothers are, to give a very contemporary example, like the ChatGPT, the perfect, faultless, and sureshot answer to every problem!😀

Toxic Tensions

 How to deal with toxic people who hate you for no reason whatsoever? You, too, must have met people who love to hate you, who try their utmost, most often in the process rendering themselves ridiculous, to reduce you to pulp they can throw away as and when they wish to, right? 

How indeed to deal with toxic people who hate and ill-treat you for no rhyme no reason? First and foremost, accept that actually their fight is with themselves. This universal truth must be accepted that they have a very negative self-image. Basically, they need a vehicle to release their inner turmoil, negativity, and most importantly, self-hatred.

Most probably, you are a soft target to them. The reasons could be multiple. Such people, for instance, realise instinctively that you are not the sort to fly in to a rage, and create a huge scene. They sense instinctively that you hate to hurt. They take advantage of your gentleness. You must have seen that they would never harass a person who will give them a tit for a tat.

Yet another major reason could be that they themselves have been hated from childhood. There is a huge deficit in their life of love. They need to take out that hurt, anger, despair  within themselves, and you happen to be the unfortunate vehicle. 

At the work place especially, they would be quite close to a self-obsessed power-monger, and you are a thorn in the (lady, too, mind you) boss' flesh, once again for no purpose! Well, such birds of a feather, too, flock together!

In the familial space, these crooked creatures realise that you care truly deeply for someone close to them. They know perfectly very well that you would not like that person to be hurt, to suffer in any way. They take advantage of your soft corner by subtly letting you know that otherwise the person you care for would be bullied.

Now that we know their psychological profile, how to deal with them? The best way is to plain ignore them. That makes them fly in to a rage. Thus they expose themselves completely and publically which makes everybody realise their cheap meanness. 

Should one confront them? Undoubtedly, yes, but only when there is a concrete, inalienable proof of their crookedness. Otherwise, such smarties can get you in to trouble for their tantrums.

Personally, I am of the opinion that one should use such toxicity to introspect and to weed out all possible faults within oneself. One should use even their baseless criticism to delete any and every possible lacunae within oneself. One should always think of one's worst critic as the guide to a better self, right?

Next, one should just laugh at them, at times, publically shaming them. Most importantly, however, never ever get down to their cheap level. The worst deal evil can dish out is to tarnish you with its own ugly stupidity.

Never ever fall a prey to such a trap. Instead, if you have a confidante, tell her about the subtle viciousness. Write about it, otherwise. Get it out of your system. Plain forget the toxic tensions. Life is too precious to be wasted on creeps!

Pratima@ Turn the tables on toxic tensions, and escape unscathed!

The Flower Princess

 Did you read fairy tales when you were a child? I for sure did. Aai-Papa encouraged us a lot when it came to all such extra-curricular activities. 'Reader's Digest' to 'Chandoba', 'Aesop's Fables' to 'Panchatantra' to 'Fairy Tales', magazines and books were our staple diet, and aplenty! I often used to get books as presents. As for the small, little school library, I had as good as devoured it. 

Of all the fairy princesses I thus read, my most favourite one was 'The Little Mermaid' by Hans Anderson. Well, even now, it is one of my most cherished texts because one can find layers of meanings in it that are deeper than the sea. 

Given such proclivities, one of my treasured pastimes was giving a face and a shape to each of the much loved literary characters. For my favourite little mermaid, the perfect symbol appeared to be the coral flower.

The coral flower is indeed absolutely fabulous. It has its own unique purity. Its snow white fragile petals are  delicateness itself. There is an indescribable innocence to their cut flower shape. The reddish ochre stem has its own gorgeous feel, and a fiery though silent strength.

The bud is a beauty, too. It is a dream to see these wonders cascade down even as you just gently shake the branch. Each flower comes dancing down. Even when it falls on the earth, it retains its clean, touch-me-not angelic image.  

Unbelievable is its fragrance. It is not heady. Nor is it intoxicating  There is a gentle divinity and  sweetness to it. Etheral is indeed the flower. One cannot be rough or harsh with it. Hold it on to your palm and the fragrance lingers on to your fist for quite some time.

No wonder, the coral flower tree is known as a gift from the heaven. No surprise that Lord Krishna gave it as a symbol of love to Rukmini.  There IS something unique and special about this flower that is simply fabulous.

One year the coral flower tree in our front yard bloomed so beautifully that we literally used to get flowers by kilos. I used to string them together in to thick luscious garlands for each one of the frames in Aai's devhara which used to look simply divine. 

Yes, indeed, there is something precious and unique about the coral flower. Rather like the feisty, innocent, idealistic, imaginative and intelligent Ariel, the Little Mermaid! No wonder, come Shravan, and yet again each year one yearns for the evening when on the drizzle soaked air wafts the gentle melody of its unique fragrance as precious as its presence!

Pratima@What to adore of the coral flowers? Fragrance, shape, colour in combo on us each showers! 

Astronomy, ahoy!

 With the Chandrayan reaching the unexplored South Pole of the moon, such an astronomical wonder should have generated a huge curiosity as well. It is a surprise it has not created much stir though. Well, most Indians appear busy with debates such as the ISRO scientists and technologists visiting the Tirupati Devasthanam or the Puttaparthy Temple or bowing down before Maa Anandamayi, and so on. 

Well, anyways, what is this astronomical wonder I am referring to? Oh, yes, the Planet Saturn is so close to the earth that its rings can be seen with the naked eye as well, apparently. I tried to. One must go outside the city with some clean space and clear air, right?

The Saturn is indeed a unique planet. It is the second largest in our solar system, the largest one being the Jupiter for sure. The Saturn, however, is special because of its  unique rings and, oh, yes, its multiple, in fact, hundred moons. 

The gaseous planet is full of hydrogen, while the moons are aqueous, that is, water rich. For all one knows, soon there might be Saturn sub-stations that send to the parched earth water, and the much needed hydrogen as fuel. There is no knowing! Imagination, supported by intelligent  technology, can achieve astronomical feats now, literally!

Well, at times, one wonders though why such a beautiful planet is a malevolent influence according to astrology. I would not know much as my knowledge in this area is quite limited. There must be better equipped minds who might be able to throw light on the astrological perception of the satanic Saturn!

In a way, this anomaly takes us back to the debate posed passingly in the first paragraph of our blog today. Which one is the truth? Astrology? Astronomy?  May be, one could argue that each one has its valency and beauty as per the personal belief system. I would not know much, though the very thought of the beautiful planet Saturn excites me, while I respect the pure mind that chants the Shani shloka for the welfare of his/her babies! 

Pratima@Bliss it is to thank astronomy/ blessed find its devotees astrology! Two ways to reach out to the Saturn! Each one has its own unique fun!

The importance of being a citizen

 Oscar Wilde is indeed a witty writer. His "Dorian Gray" is indeed one of the world's best novels, given the truly critical, eternally relevant issues it deals with. He was a poor playwright though. Many Eng Lit special students, too, would not read his silly (in all senses of the term) plays now. 

One such title by him is "The Importance of Being Earnest". It is a play that is much critiqued, almost dismissed, today as a pathetic play. Its title, however, is what our blog today plays with. Why? Coz in the so-called most advanced country,  the U.S, it was on August 26 in the last year of the second decade of the earlier century that women finally understood the importance of being a citizen.

Well, the most important duty of a citizen, especially in a democracy, is the right to vote. The better half of the country that touts itself as the country of aspirations did not enjoy this basic right, as they could not vote in the beginning of the twentieth century. The late nineteenth century Suffragist fight that began in the U.K.  was in real earnest in the U.S. as well. 

There were such anomalies as women candidates in elections even when women were not allowed to be voters. That bitter struggle came to fruition on August 26, 1920. The celebrated American Constitution took a major step towards equality and  inclusiveness via a major amendment. Hence, on the eve of this seminally important day, this title of our blog! 

In our country, post Independence, being a citizen has not been that difficult. We have got many  citizen rights without much ado. One such highly inclusive right as a citizen is the right to vote so that we can democratically elect the government. This earnest right, to continue playing with Wilde's title, has come easy to us.

In fact, come elections, amd many politicians have dreamt of reducing the voting age so that the so-called demographic dividend is advantageous to their respective party. Well, high time, Indian citizens realise the importance of being a voter, a right for which women faced bludgeon blows even in the so-called advanced countries not even a century ago!

Pratima@ The importance of being a citizen, earnest at that, begins with the right to vote, and never ends!

Two Tales n Tulsidas!

 The Kabir dohe always end with "kahat Kabira" which can be translated as "says Kabira". An alliterative take on such a moniker for  Saint Tulsidas would be " Tells Tulsi." I would like to play a little on this title. I want it to read "Tulsi Tales" because the two tales i am going to talk of tell us a very interesting story indeed.

Seemingly, as a child, Tulsidas was known as "Rambola Dubey". Dubey was the family name. As for the first name, there is this very interesting story. Apparently, the gestation period before his birth was a full year, proper twelve months. As a baby, he had a perfect set of teeth. He looked more like a boy than a baby. Most interestingly, his very first enunciation in this wicked world of ours was not a cry like the rest of us. 

He uttered "Ram" as the first ever sound he enunciated. So his name "Rambola". His parents were a little upset due to all such unusual  aspects. So the dai looked after him. Soon she, too, died. Thereafter, Goddess Parvati herself fed him in the guise of a Brahmin woman, it seems.

I find this story most interesting. His very first utterance in a way precludes his destiny as a devotee-cum-saint poet. His childhood signifies, moreover, how the society creates the cast-away's, and most importantly, how the rejects, the downtrodden, the outsiders are helped to survive in a hapless world which one day they might make different.

Yet another story about Tulsidas that has fascinated me for a long time is how his amour turns in to devotion for the Lord. Apparently, he loves his wife to distraction. Once she goes to her parents' place. He cannot tolerate the separation. 

He swims across a river in spate, and climbs up a rope, which is actually a snake hanging, so that he can see her. She is not flattered, however. In fact, she chides him for his obsession which drives him not only to the holy shrines, but also to his greatness as a poet-saint who made the life of Lord Rama accessible to the common man.

I love these Tulsi Tales because, in my opinion, they show how a reject, a common man can be the center of an entire Bhakti sect which changed the very course of Indian identity, I would say!

Pratima@The turns and twists life takes/ banality by magic it in to grandeur makes!

Over the moon

 Moon Gaye hum! Finally! A great achievement indeed because the landing was on the south pole. A feat rarely achieved across the world! The ISRO scientists sure deserve our warmest congratulations!

The cutest depiction of this wonderful achievement  was Dharati Mata/Mother Earth sending the rover as a rakhi to Chanda Mama/Uncle Moon just a little ahead of the rakshabandhan! Felt a little senti when my brother sent me the sweet image.

Could not watch it live personally as I was travelling back home after a long day. Have saved the official video, and would watch it repeatedly.

The landing made me think though. Actually, this was to happen last time itself. The perfect preparation then was consciously ruined by internal politics, supported by all sorts, which consciously, knowingly saw to it that the attempt would fail because certain jealous, powerful intellectual mafiosi with correct connections did not want it to succeed. 

To such people very good at groupism, it does not matter that a huge, sincere, genuine effort gets wasted so long as their cheap, mean politicking works. They could score a point against their target around whom an unseen but tough to crack web gets woven so silently that the target is trapped and sure shot fails! Who cares about the over all image of the institution so long as their lackey would now not be pushed back?

It is against such a background that the management response matters. For sure, the management would be aware of the subtle weaving. The politicking gang alone would not have their Trojan horses, right? The management, too, would have its agents in the right place and would certainly know what is up, right? Why do delays consciously happen, for instance, despite repeated requests, for example?

Hence, in my opinion, that unforgettable visual of the prime minister comforting the sobbing Head of the ISRO was a very reassuring moment. May be, it reached the right message to the meanie gang that the whole matters more than their small time politicking!

Hope the ISRO scientists would now be the real stars and icons, unlike the film stars and the sports legends who hog the limelight eternally. Here is hoping, too, that the great women scientists and technologists do NOT get asked 'tough' questions such as how they fight with the wicked ma-in-law, and which is hubby's favourite dish, and how they trapped their moon on this earth!

 Honestly, there is no knowing what comedy shows and their hosts with a so-called script might consider fun and imaginative! The argument, moreover, would be the public likes such stuff! 

How to survive in such a world? Never give up on your dreams neither on your inner core. For sure! A bigger gate always opens when a small window closes! Beyond this personal emblem, "willing suspension of disbelief" should be the eternal policy. 

Except your immediate family, suspect the motives of and disbelieve everyone, whatever age/gender/caste/class/so-called relationship/affiliation, and even if/when such a strategy goes against your grain. Let them subtly know you understand their nastiness and games. Yes, most importantly, your every performance hereafter must outshine such meanness through a gritty calmness.

Survive you must! So subtly spread the good word around that, though a little late, you have seen through the vicious game, obviously vehemently denied by them. You yourself laugh at it on as many of occasions as possible. Use this guffaw to subtly mock them as well. That would take the sting out of their meanness cheaply exhibited. Let them desperately continue to quote and jeer at it. One knowing look is enough to put all such crooks in place! That would be the real safe landing!

Pratima@ Technology should win, not mean techniques! Better reach the moon, but be down to earth!

Silly but smart!

 When stress threatens, laugh, eh, rather, guffaw. That is possible if the stuff is smart. Hey, I said 'smart', okay? Not smut! Silly does it. For sure! So here are some laugh lines!

1) Why is 6 afraid of 7?

      Coz 7 8 9!

2) Which subject is a snake's favourite?

     Hisssssstory!

3) Which is a witch's favourite activity at school?

     Spelling!

4) Why did the dog always win all the prizes during the Prize Distribution Ceremony?

      He was the teacher's  pet!

5) The baby strawberry was very unhappy Why?

       Coz the family was in a jam!

This one is a real gem! 

Why was Cinderella bad at soccer?

        Coz for her magic lay in

         running away 

         from a ball!

Pratima@ Laughter, laughter/ A sure shot stress buster!

Gen Senior Citizens!

 Senile? Hey, you gotta be kidding!

 Eager to explore? You betcha!

 Natty, but not nutty? Yippie, yippie, yup!

 Intelligent? Beyond words, you know!

 Oh, Learning to re-learn?  For SURE!

 Raring to go?  No doubts whatsoever!

 

  Casual n cool! Has to be!

  Independent! Every which way!

  Trials matter, so do errors! But, yes!

  Islands if contentment! Certainly!

  Zany yet zen-y! Could not agree more!

  Eager n aware! Nary senti never mental!

  Neither lonely nor lost! That's way to be!

  Sure of self, ne'er sore! Thus be the seniors!

 Center in a vortex! 

 That's Gen Senior citizens!

 The questions and exclamations

 Of this acrostic them define does!

 Yes, from a certain class n city-bred

 Of sterner stuff they are made!

Pratima@ Unlike their parents, and certainly unlike their grandparents, Urban Gen Senior Citizens are a different lot. With two/three tier towns in a hurry to be metros, the left-out 'oldies' in hamlets and villages, too, would soon realise that this century is theirs, too! Senior citizens grow, not grey!

Scientific Temper

 Chandrayan 3 of-n-by apro ISRO is set to make history. Very soon, just a couple of days later, on August 23, it should manage to soft land on moon, and successfully this time around. 

As a part of the inner core team, a senior scientist at and the director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Prof. Annapurni Subramanyan exuded confidence that the moon landing this time would be a success as it is meticulously planned. There was a word of caution though. She opined that the space is vast, and hence all the co-ordinates cannot be completely controlled or contained.

That, in my opinion, is the scientific temper, aware of base axioms, rational, logical, objective, and yet honestly aware of the X factor. Unfortunately, the entire debate carried on at the time of the launch centered around such power women's  traditional look!

Well, just because you wear revealing clothes, smoke/drink/eat non-veg, do not wear a bindi or jewellery does not mean you are rational(ist) or modern or liberated or feminist! Such simplistic axioms ruin the valency of the scientific temper debate or the feminist analysis.

Similarly, without knowing even an iota of truth, or at least her version, castigating an absolutely  innocent woman of any  thought/belief crime she neither committed nor even thought of, is hardly rationalist! Nor does it reveal any scientific temper!

 Horrible it is equally to malign a woman (as a witch or a crazy nut or a bad bitch) just because she is not interested in your candidate whom you are promoting for your own ulterior selfish motives or to ruin her possible growth! Absolutely irrational, fascistic, and unscientific!

In other words, no mafia, especially of the intellectual variety, can say that theirs alone is the only truth, just because they are the power group or because they are promoting or are powered by X political party with huge tentacles. 

To begin  with, the 'with us or against us' binary is very silly because the scientific temper is aware that paradigms shift constantly, and in a truly volatile way in the current times. Hence, in this vast universe, to tom-tom one's piddly perspective as the only/absolute truth is the real fascism. Opening up one's own sanctified beliefs to an alternative vision is the real scientific temper!

Pratima@Scientific spirit lies in humility, in knowing the bounds of one's own beliefs, and their limits.

False(ified) Truths

 A picture is worth a hundred books, they say. Indeed it is, but in multiple ways and senses. In our blog today, given the World Photography Day, let us explore some of these many facets.

Apparently, a pic can conscientise the entire world wordlessly. The best example of this truth, verified at that, would be the photograph of Ailan Kurdi's dead body that transformed the very outlook towards the migrants, given the plight of the innocent children, more victimised than even women, as they had no say, zilch control over the large scale issues that 'object'ified them.

Yet are pictures objective? Are they clean and innocent? Yes, and no! Actually, mostly no! Let us remember two famous pics that 'shook' the world. The first one is that of the 'Third World Mona Lisa'. Read up the entire history to understand how actually it is 'his'story, how an 'ace', much 'advertised' before and after, photographer treats an ethnic immigrant for a great shot.

 Sure he violates her personal space. He 'touches up' the pic as well. He  is 'advertised' into greatness, gets a lifetime of celebrity status, while her difficult life becomes more impossible due to the falsified truth in that 'pic'!

Extremely sensitive and ethical issues are involved in a pic. And, oh, yes, I am indeed happy that such a feel dominated my analysis of the Manipur video in my blog, dated July 23, and entitled "Truly disturbing". 

Let me explain the concept a little. In "Cultural Studies", "Liberal Arts" kind of syllabi, often there is this debate about "visual history".  My submission, to begin with, is that this 'vision' is indeed problematic because pics are 'touched' up, or are 'photoshopped' to use the current lingo. 

Next, they inevitably reflect, and immortalise, a certain 'politics', (set a narrative, to use the pop term today!) that is, the entire, and absolutely not innocent, chain of 'who' chooses 'what' to shoot, 'why',  from 'which' angle, 'when', and 'where', and finally 'who' publishes it 'when' 'how' 'where', or never! 

Each of these terms is hugely loaded, and has tremendous repercussions. In my opinion, here a book, even a short story, would be far 'truer' and authentic because the sight of literature, both denotatively and connotatively,  is never narrow, unlike the camera lens!

Much worse in my opinion is the photo-genetic(!) effect on the photographer, and in the last analysis, on the viewership. This issue was what I referred to in my blog on July 23. How can anyone calmly continue to shoot/store/share a pic/a video while an atrocity is actually taking place right in front of one's eyes? The videographer/photographer has to be as satanic as, if not 'knowingly' more than, the perpetrators!

Much worse, such pics (a parallel would be people making camera reels of an accident victim dying, instead of using that very mobile to call an ambulance) make the whole society in to unconcerned witnesses who are disgusting alibi to a horror.

Such stony insensitivity, (though glorified then as commitment to the duty of  'reporting'), earlier visible in war photography such as the 1972 Napalm Girl pic shows, has now sipped in to most citizens, and that is the real tragedy.

How to solve this problem? May be, there could be from higher secondary school onwards, such discussions in schools. May be, parents let children know that conscious cruelty is not a joke, not laugh-worthy, but heinous. Otherwise, slowly but surely, in the as of now unruly, AI days, sensitivity and truth would die thousand deaths every second!

Pratima@The worst crime is to stand by  (and create history with camera) when an atrocity of any intensity/magnitude takes place. No punishment is enough for it as it objectifies reality to dehumanise everything!

Artificial Images

 Would you agree with me that we do have mental images that we have constructed of others, and especially when we do not have a lot of, almost nil, contact with them? May be, imagination, via fantasy and romanticism, colours them. Yet we cannot deny that such images do exist.

Let me give you a concrete example or two. I have seen very few pictures of either Lokmanya Tilak or Bhagat Singh. Most photos are a blur. Yet I have my own vision of how Lokmanya or Bhagat Singh would look, my own image, my own perception of them, which, may be, is born out of their great thoughts and inspiring ideas.

Well, the so-called AI generated pictures of all the great freedom fighters dispel the myth that the AI is more intelligent and creative than most human beings.  The images that the AI has created of the great freedom fighters give a total lie to such silly suppositions.

Most such images that the AI has created have a rather inebriated look. They all seem to have sipped a little much too much is the feel the pics give. Alternatively, the pics look as if the subjects suffer from an acute attack of piles!

Well, these horrors have made me optimistic though. Many a ChatGPT may come and go, but to human creativity and imagination, a challenge they cannot throw. May be, the AI may be good at logical, rational equations, et al. But no substitute can any machine be to human creativity or imagination!

Let us hope then that the further sophistication of the AI  would depend on the more solid, however imperceptible, base of emotions, synthesis rather than sheer logic, analysis. Well, the moment the right brain takes over, great things happen! There is hope thus for the unique individuality in the AI world whose structure  always appears propelled by the logic of market forces amongst many such vicious circles. Long live imagination! Long live creativity! Long live unique, special individuality!

Pratima@Asimov thought of the three rules that govern the robotic reality. With the AI, too, there is an urgent need to define/refine such principles that could govern tthe artificial imagery! In creativity, the AI has no say!

The shadow that never lies

 August 18 is indeed a unique day. The shadow, that integral part of our being, our eternal imprint in a way, is going to leave us, and apparently for the whole day. Well, there often is this day when around 12 noon, the shadow vanishes literally in to thin air. Does not lie, in any sense of the term!

On August 18, however, the whole day, there would not be any shadow, it seems. Of course, the veracity of this statement can be checked tomorrow.  What is the scientific base behind this phenomenon? On its axis, the sun would apparently be exactly atop the earth, and hence no shadow!

Yes, science could thus explain the shadow, or the lack of it. Yet the shadow is something that is absolutely central to our identity. Unlike the image in the mirror, it is not the reverse side of our personality, does not 'lie'.

Often in literature, and in other arts such as painting and films, the shadow is symbolically used to signify either the dark days due to inevitable misfortune which could include a rejection or two, for instance. Equally significantly, the shadow could signify the dark side of a person, carefully stashed away from coming to light.

Oh, yes , the shadow could either be a friend who is eternally faithful, always has your back, literally, too! Much worse and closer to truth, and lived realities, the shadow can be a treacherous frenemy who pretends to be a friend; but whose actions behind your back are much worse than that of an enemy!

Personally, for me, the shadow reference is always to two great myths. The first one obviously is the Platonic cave, the shadows standing in the search for light. The symbolism is frankly too obvious to be explained, right?

My personal favourite though is the Orpheus and Eurydice story. When Orpheus charms the king of the nether world with his art to win back the soul of his beloved Eurydice, the only condition, while she would follow him like the shadow, is that he must not turn back till he crosses Styx, the river of forgetfulness.

 Given his fear and worries, i suppose, rather than any temptation, in the last split second, he turns back to ascertain that she indeed is there, thus to lose her forever. Of course, equally tragic is his end. In my opinion, this great love story, beautifully explored by Edwin Muir in his moving poem "Orpheus' Dream" is a beautiful  use of the shadow as a symbol, making a great comment both on love, and faith/belief/hope which ideally should be as unwavering as genuine, true love, I suppose.

In my opinion, the shadow, often referred to by Shakespeare to indicate the ravages of time, is used in the Indian tradition to yet again signify true, unwavering love. Oh, yes, of course, I am referring to the Savitri myth which I do interpret differently. More about it, some time later!

Yet another moving reference to the shadow in my opinion is by Helen Keller. This visually impaired lady asserts, "keep your face always to the sun so that you never have to see the shadow ". What a sunny vision and lovely  optimism even when everything apparently was against her!

The shadow saga is actually endless. A blog cannot be. Before the reader's boredom starts to cast a shadow on the blog, better to stop, right, instead of lengthening the discussion with Amitav Ghosh, rather like the lingering evening shadows?

Pratima@ Better never be shadowed by any negativities. That is the way of the word!

The French Flavour

 The accession of the princely states in to the independent Indian Republic is a tough tale that the Iron Man of India alone could have scripted so successfully.  Yet, in the Southern most tip of India, there used to be a small little colony which integrated really well in to the independent Indian Republic, without the 'nawabi nakharas' or the princely prejudices. That is the erstwhile Pondicherry, now named Puducherry, echoing the ancient Tamil nomenclature.

Even today, the town has a quaint French Flavour. French is almost as good as the mother tongue there, despite the native Tamil and the obvious English. The town has a very Frenchie feel to it. This 'French Riviera of the East' has the Parisian promenades with a quasi-L'Arc de Triomphe arch, the foliage flaunting walks, and the typical French Rococo monuments. Like the deep rumble of the Arabian Sea by its side, the town has an ambience of quietude.

The Aurobindo Ashram, the  Auroville Matru-mandir,  these are unmistakable centers of peace. So is the Basilica, yet again reminiscent of Paris. The strong Catholicism here does not leave a bitter taste in the mouth, unlike the North-Eastern conversions. The town even now is rarely in news for the wrong reasons. In fact, Kiran Bedi made this quiet place newsworthy at times!

Not that there has not been a racial mix.  Surely though, it does not have a tribal mix-up. In the pre-colonial times, it was Vedapur! It had the Roman trade connect in the first century! The ancient Choulya-Pandya kingdoms influenced its trajectory, too. 

The European connect started in the sixteenth century. As early as 1521, the Portugese reached there for the clothes trade. The Dutch followed. The French settlement strengthened circa 1694, and by 1699, it was a proper French colony.

After the Indian Independence, in 1954, it became a de facto part of the Indian Republic. The process was de jure on August 16, 1964. This Union Territory hence has a two days long holiday in mid-August. 

Why is it that this South-Eastern Union Territory, or, for that matter, the South-Western state of Goa never explodes, unlike the eternally interrupted North-East? Well, Goa and Puducherry, too, were colonised/controlled by strongly Catholic countries. Goa is flush with the Holy Relics! Yet neither place is eternally on the boil, unlike the North-East.

 Why? May be, as Sociology scholars often maintain, the Southern states in every country are quieter, more stable. May be, the sea by the side, unlike the craggy hills in the North-East, has a calming influence! Now, that is, of course, flippant!

 Personally, I feel the "sushegaat" satisfaction comes more from the highly intellectual, rational, arty French Flavour, the "mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup" Frenchie 'carpe diem' philosophy. What say?

Pratima@'Live and let live' seems to the theme song, the refrain behind the Southern success story.

The Unsung Heroes

 August 15 was celebrated with lots of fervour and enthusiasm, as it should be.  The general festive feel made me think though. Yes, there is an illustrious list of leaders who were in the forefront of the freedom struggle. Amongst these, each one of us has a favourite or two, too. 

As for me, for example, Lokmanya Tilak and Bhagat Singh matter the most. In my opinion, both of them were revolutionary thinkers and conscientious activists who tried to give the movement a philosophical gravitas.

How about the footsoldiers though? Did you know about Kushal Konwar, for example? People who are busy with cheap politicking and empty rhetoric regarding the Northeast should read about him, I feel, and do think so very strongly at that.

At least, he was a scion of a royal family. How about the very many nameless unsung heroes who passionately and in a feat of idealism joined the Quit India movement, leaving midway their educational pursuits, their government jobs?Who remembers them now, lost as we are to orgies of various types of self(ish)-indulgences?

Have you read "Kanthapura" by  Raja Rao?  Teaching it to post-graduate students was a revelation. The novel is a fictional story of an idealist, oh, yes, a Bramhin (though currently this is a dirty curse word, the whipping boy/girl of every ideologue) youth, Moorthy.

 Moorthy uses the freedom struggle to clean up all the cobwebs, be it casteist, economic, gender-related, from his small town. Very intelligently and passionately, he uses mythical references to convince and cleanse all the groups and generations in his hometown.

My submission today is that there were thousands of such, and not fictional, but real Moorthy's across the breadth and width of India. Who remembers them at all?What happened to them? Very few would get any government pension. Most would be highly honourable, and might reject it, too, as they would not accept monetary compensation for doing their duty to the motherland! 

Yes, we need to revive (and thus re-live) their great but unsung trajectories. Now they are a lost generation truly, in every sense of the term. If a small lamp is lit in some form or the other in their memory, it would illumine our lives!

Pratima@ A team effort must respect every participant.

Independence

 As 2022 marked the Platinum Jubilee of our Independence, last year I created an alphabetically arranged list of  nouns that celebrated India's uniqueness. "A:Allure, B:Bravery, C: Caution" types. It got published on the blog, and within minutes, it was lost in that dark hole called the world wide web. How? Why? I would not know it! Of course, given the celebratory mood, I did try to retrieve the list from my memory, et al.

This year, let me try something different. Yes, seventy-six is sure old for a human being. For a nation though, it is just the beginning. India, moreover, is a complex phenomenon. We are an ancient civilisation, but a very young nation. Oh, no, I am not talking about the by now beaten to death concept called 'demographic dividend'. What I mean is compared to any Western colonising countries, we ARE indeed young.

Given this conundrum, 'an ancient civilisation, a young nation', to understand India better, I am going to narrate two anecdotes about elephants. An elephant is a unique animal. It is hyper intelligent, very sensitive (remember the Aesop story about a wicked tailor who hurts an innocent, loving elephant for the heck of it, and for crude fun), truly kind and hugely powerful. 

Anecdote Number One: When a baby elephant is born, the mahout starts tying it with a soft rope made of grass. The elephant, when it grows up, has gotten so used to this concept called chain that it never occurs to this intelligent animal that he can unshackle himself any moment! Anecdote Number Two: An elephant has to climb in to a lorry. To help him, a huge sheet of solid wood is placed in a vertical/diagonal way so that he can get in easily. Yet the sensitive giant would not clamber up unless and until the mahout directs it with a goad, the 'ankush'.

My submission is that India is like that elephant, mighty, brilliant, but it has got used to its shackles and goads. What are these? One of them could be casteism, a shackle which now is becoming a goad in a subtle but sure way.  Yet another shackle-n-goad is the need for approval of/from/by others, especially the Western colonising countries. Our politicians hence want democracy in our sovereign country to be saved/supported by the U.S. and the U.K.! One adverse documentary by the BBC, and we lose our sleep, our cool over it.

Most importantly, we are now less argumentative, and growing more rabid. The best proof thereof would be the t.v. debates, of course.  We seem to have forgotten that an argument needs a counter-argument, not shenanigans. True, you have to talk to a fool only in the language he/she understands. Yet none can defeat an intelligent, rational, structured and organised thought process that is constantly evolving. Why 'react'? Instead why not 'respond' pro-actively? Why should we justify ourselves constantly? We need to break such shackles and goads in my opinion.

I have a firm belief that the only possible  comparison ever is only with one's own self, what one was, what one is, where one would be, thus growing constantly and creatively. If the competition is only with oneself,  there is an unmistakable growth. Similarly, one's own line is thus eternally longer, and one does not heed belittling by others.

We need to be independent of all the internal and external coercions, compulsions and constraints. We would thus be free "of" the "with us or with them" kinda Bush-ean binary. Thus shall we be free "from" the psychological/intellectual bullying and terrorism, free "of" empty personality politicking, but free "to" be ourselves, to explore new vistas and  horizons!

Pratima@ Freedom and liberty/with responsibility/thus are we born-n-bred free! Happy Independence Day!

Unique indeed!

 Our world is made of all sorts, but it is a rule universally acknowledged that the so-called normal rules the roost. Imagine hence the plight of the left handed people in a world made by and for the right handed! Simple stuff must be rather tough, nay, indeed difficult. 

Let us think of an example, or two. As a school child, when the leftie kid would write, the ridge of the notebook must butt in to his tender tiny hand, right? Equally tough, but rather comic, it must be eating from the lunch box during the recess, sitting right next to a classmate whose right elbow would repeatedly hit the small little spoon, and vice versa, of course!

There are multiple misunderstandings about/against such people. People born before the eighties, that is, before the big bad world encroached our consciousness  via the multi-channel television, would remember the embarassment their parents felt when they naturally, normally extended the left palm to accept the 'pooja prasad'! No wonder, even in the post-1990's, there used to be mothers who literally beat up their kids in to being 'right'ies!

Actually, like the Taureans, the lefties, too, belong to a gang that includes literally  the   "who is who"of the world. In India, we have a superb lefties club that includes, it seems, Gandhiji, Modiji, Ratan Tataji, Sachin Tendulkar, Rajnikanth, Asha Bhosale, for instance.

Absolutely probable it is that lefties would be unique and special because our left side is controlled by the right brain which is responsible for creativity, intuition, emotions, and language oriented capacities and abilities. If my brother's darling son, Siddhu, our family's youngest, is any proof, lefties have a great sense of humour. They love to laugh, guffaw, grin from ear to ear. Lefties, in brief, make the world right, okay?

Pratima@ I was just thinking of, rather imagining, the school parade when the P.T. master would holler "left, left, left" or "right, right, right" for that matter. Hilarious it must be when a rightie classmate would march against a leftie! Oh, by the way, how do lefties understand the mirror image, 'right'?

Youth

 Repeatedly leaders and influencers talk of India's 'demographic dividend', that is to say, the huge majority of the young amongst the Indian citizenry. This theme has already been much discussed ideologically. Today let us not get in to this by-now banal debate. Instead let us define the very concept, 'youth'.

Can youth be merely defined by the date of birth? In my opinion, such a conception lacks intellectual rigour. When babies are born literally by the second, somebody or the other would constantly be 'younger'.

Youth, in my opinion, is a cluster of certain characteristic qualities. Basically, it IS a state of mind. How is this mindset? A youthful vision is never 'blase'. It never has the ' been there, done that' 'attitude'. It is ever ready to not only explore the new, but basically it is all set to examine the old anew. The mantra of a young mindset is 'learn, un-learn, re-learn'. In other words, there is a constant sense of wonder that defines youth.

Youth hence is never bored. Enthusiasm beyond psychological tiredness is the hallmark of youth. Youth hence is  prepared to commit, even make a mistake, learn from it, and continue the exploration of life with a renewed vigour. A bored, eternally depressed mind for no cause is the real stuff oldness is made of.

Youth is never defeated by the difficulties, misfortunes, problems that can be a hurdle. It is not empty optimism. Nor is it a cheap 'positive' attitude. Youth accepts the insurmountable difficulty. Youth, however, is committed to the need to overcome it. 

Despite accepting the inevitable anger, self-pity, uncertainty at the sudden misfortune, youth surely, and not so slowly, recognises the countless blessings one has. It could be the rock solid support of a kind, loving father, for instance. Instead of wallowing in negativity, youth tries to create a new design out of the botched up mess.

Never is youth cruel, crude, vulgar. Nor is it self-indulgent, self-centred, self-pitying.  It is intelligent, emotional, with a connect with the head, heart and soul. May be, that is why the confessions of the holocaust survivors, despite suffering the worst possible, are always gentle, thoughtful and quiet-n-content!

Pratima@ Youth is the bedrock of  good vibes from across the universe.

The Majesty

 How the very visuals create a perception, right?  Look at the cat family. Well, I am not referring here to the group merely  technically. What I mean is, I will not be discussing here the evolutionary relationship the 'felidae' family shares among its members. 

Unmistakably, they all, the cat, the serval, the caracal, the cheetah, the leopard, the tiger, and the lion share the gene pool. Each has a unique personality as well. The serval is an African wild cat. The caracal has bunny ears. The rare  cheetah literally has a windspeed. The leopard is wily. The tiger is ferocious. 

Unique, however, is the lion. Its very look is royal. The majestic mane, the piercing look, the athletic, agile and  beautifully built body, the very visual effect is grand, right?The lion cubs, too, are the cutest, mewling the soft way, naughtily playing endlessly with siblings and cousins.Very soon, that meow would resound in to a roar the whole jungle would listen to.

 A lioness, too, is a 'thing of beauty', what with the pale golden colour, the spring in the step, the ochre golden eyes,  the slim, trim waistline, and so on. The lionesses are the arch feminists in my opinion. They hunt for the family, they care for their own cubs, and provide a sisterly support to the other lionesses in the pride in child rearing, in hunting, in keeping the pride together.

Yes, they are big built. Of all the off-shoots of the 'felidae' family, the lions/lionesses might be the heaviest. I think, a lion is weightier than a tiger, though right now I do not have the data to prove it either ways. Surely the lions appear larger. So appears their personality, at least as perceived imaginatively.

Yes, a lion is a carnivore, too. Yet somehow a lion appears noble, has a majestic look. A lion does not appear violent or vicious. Even the hunting technique appears less cruel, unlike a tiger's or the much ignored leopard's. 

Even in stories and myths, we have a majestic, grand, gorgeous representation of a lion. Remember  the story of 'the lion and the slave'? The lion, as the story shows us, has deep gratitude. Remember Simba of 'The Lion King' fame? How can we forget the story of Elsa, the lioness? Or her Maharashtrian cousin, Sonali, the lion cub of Purnapatre family?

All in all, we get the feel that the lions are noble, they are indeed regal. May be, the Gir forest may not bear out such stories. Yet somehow one has a gut feel, the tales the leaves of the Gir forest may rustle to the gentle drizzle may not be vastly different from the majesty we meet in Aesop's fables!

Somehow, hence, a Richard Parker does not appear in the annales of the lion-man connection. We love the conservation of lions, never begrudge the cost, and want them to be the eternal kings of the dense forest. No wonder, when a small time goon appears to be too big for his paws, eh, boots, the saying goes, every cat is a lion in his lane. It does not occur to anyone to say, every cat is a tiger or a leopard in its lane, right? 

Actually, if they were to eventually fight it out, it seems, the terrible tiger might win, and yet in the perception and imagination of millions, the lion is the king. Indeed, THE majesty! Long live on this earth that grandeur called the lion!

Pratima@" The lion is passion, the lion is fire, lions call you to them," says Michael Samuels.

How to read?

 'How to read?' can indeed be a grave question. At times, it is more difficult to answer than 'why/what to read?' When does such a predicament threaten? I can think of a few contexts when this problem may appear grievous.

Let us look at the first one. I suppose, it is indeed unfortunate when you love reading, but are visually impaired. Well, I am the kind of person who always finds a way out of any terrible scenario. Now technology can be a great help. There are any number of apps that can convert the normal content in to Braille. Better still, these days, one can 'listen' to books. This process has many such additional advantages as improving your concentration, right?

The other problem could be the issue of script. Any number of much used languages such as Konkani and almost all indigenous languages may not have a script. It is normal in a way  because a language is basically spoken. In other words, a script or lack thereof need not matter.

True, the cave pictures, the hieroglyphics, not to forget the emojis today show that there can be visual alternatives that form a unique language of their own. May be, like Konkani does, for the time being, the script of an other language can be used.

Every problem, however difficult, has a solution, and a neat n nice one. So the apparently unsurmountable problems in the path of reading thus solved, read we MUST, and better books than the 'utilitarian' or the 'how to' books, right? Every field has great books. Why, there are lovely books on books! 'Publication History' alias 'History of Publication, of Book Making' is a hot favourite course in the 'Liberal Arts' type of curricula!

Reading enriches us, and thus the quality of our lives, hugely, and every which way. Read, in brief, to (t)read a better, a dream like life!

Pratima @Reading maketh a (wo)man!

Indigenous? Ingenuous? Ingineous?

 August 9 is an extremely interesting day. It is the " Leave India, Go back" day, an extremely important day, a turning point in the history of the Indian freedom struggle. The day is focal to the story, both literally and metaphorically, of a bibliophile as well. More about this aspect in the blog tomorrow.

August 9, moreover, is the day dedicated to celebrating the world over the indigenous population. Indeed it is needed as literally the entire mankind seems to be obsessed with 'modernity'. In the hot pursuit of such 'progress', the land, the forests that are the main stay of the indigenous tribes are marauded. A very way of life may breathe its last.

Since August 9 is related to reading as well, may I request you to read the Letter by Chief Seathl? It was written in 1854. It was addressed to the then President of the mighty White America, President Franklin Pierce. It proves how 'to harm the earth is to heap contempt on the Creator'. 

Exceptionally poetic, as it is a passionate cry from the heart, this genuine appeal shows what it is to be ingenuous, that is, clean, innocent, straightforward. More pantheistic than Wordsworth and Coleridge, more transcendentalist than Emerson and Thoreau, it shows that for the 'savage' Native American, the 'Red Indian', what matters is the 'soft sound of the wind, cleansed by the mid-day rain, scented with pine, as it darts over the face of the pond'.

Such ingenuous indigenous people are decreasing these days. Mostly, there are modern day indigenous people. Led by wily politicians and shrewd (thought) leaders, they are ingenious. 'Smart' they are, no longer innocent nor clean. 

Otherwise, the Manipur incident would not have happened. The ingenuous tribes would not have allowed three women to be photographed, video-ed naked, with the 'parade' video safely tucked away in the memory card till the right moment exploded!?! Ingenuous people cannot see innocence targetted, humiliated.  For SURE. They cannot keep quiet (in)conveniently.

Similarly, no ingenuous indigenous people would declare themselves the people of the soil, with their ingenious (thought) leaders pushing all along a  curious narrative of Aryan invasion, targetting a harmless minority (of three per cent tops) over some imagined(!?! because by that time the democratic openness of the Bhakti mo(ve)ment had taken roots)  insults in the medieval age, or a little later. This IS casteism as well. Such conscious seclusion IS victimisation as well, with unmistakable echoes of the Holocaust.

Why beat such distant drums? Why the need to use indigeneity ingeniously? Instead of an oppositional stance with a hidden pogrom, why not follow the path of Albert Schweitzer or the Amte family or the Bang couple, and many, many more? In my opinion, using the indigenous tribals for some hidden agenda is as vicious as all the paternalistic, capitalistic cartels! The indigenous  god of the earth, the river, the wind and the fire sees in to all hearts, and knows very well who is ingenuous and how to avoid the ingenious!

Pratima@ The real problem is the ugly evil in the crooked hearts and twisted brains, dirty minds and daft heads of sick people!

The pariah treatment

 Once upon a time, in the small, little garden in the front yard of our home, all sorts of birds used to build cute little nests. Once there was this lovely blue bird with beautiful blue eggs. I remember literally guarding the nest throughout the day.

Well, now a days, it is mostly pigeons with their shaggy nests which are neither neat nor shapely. These nests are mostly some sticks put loosely together. Before they vanished from the cities-transforming-themselves-in to-metro like Pune, sparrows used to regularly build their nests in the patio. 

It used to be a very chirpy flurry of activities. Aai-Papa would always tell us not to go too near, not to get up-n-close with the chicks because sparrows, if they sense the human scent on a chick, treat the poor thing like a pariah, and apparently kill the birdie, it seems.

Most probably, it must be their worry that we might fall down and hurt ourselves in the process of climbing up to peer in to the nest. May be, the mother sparrow might get aggressive, and hurt us. Apparently, hence, we were told this make-believe myth.

Many people believe in this tale of 'sparrow killing the chick' very strongly though. I find it to be a process of pariah production. That makes me think a lot through this process of pariah making. Why do people treat others as pariahs?

May be, they are extremely selfish and self- centred, and are comfy with others if and only if or when/where and only when/where people are useful to them. Such 'use-n-throw' mentality may make them find friends as pariahs when powerful people are in the vicinity. Either they think that the pariah may steal the focus of attention away from them or they may be afraid that the powers-that-be do not like the pariah, and hence do not want any contamination.

They might find a person inconvenient in a given context/scenario, and hence may look through such a person, making her feel a pariah. May be, a person encroaches their or their friend's turf unknowingly, and hence needs to be put in to (actually, rather out of!) place. Hence the look-through treatment, may be.

Well, I do think that actually they are the real pariahs as they are absolutely outside the sphere of decency and ethics. Thus  they make themselves pariahs. Their behaviour reflects extremely poorly on their self worth as well. If they cannot own up a relationship, be it a colleague, a friend, a relative (whatever be the reason behind their apparent exclusionary behaviour), they are that much small, mean, and diffident!

How to behave with such people? Plain ignore their small time and cheap villainy? Best response, I would say, would be 'wipe your hand across your mouth, and laugh' to quote a phrase from T.S.Eliot's "The Preludes" because such weirdos are hardly worth a thought!

Pratima@ How you treat others reflects on who you are!

English as we do the talking of her

 Look at the title yet again. "English as we do the talking of her". Confused? Well, yes, i, too was. Believe me though! There are geniuses who come up with such gems! 

Literal translation of Marathi/Hindi the horrid 'sentence' is. Believe me, there are people, highly educated at that, with a Ph.D. in English literature/linguistics, moreover, who produce such wonders as the sentence above or "come and do signature"!

In a well-known college, known once upon a time for its Dept. of English, once this lady, the Head, asked me to "put your sign on the backside." Honestly, I was thoroughly confused, given the ribald implication staring at me, and especially because my preferences are absolutely straight. 

More fun was to follow. Another senior professor, too, was to be 'involved' in the 'procedure'. She sent me on an errand. "Go, call Sir. He did the sign only on front. Forgot backside." Dutifully I asked the great guy to see "Ma'am". 

He was irritated as he was in a tearing hurry. Said he,"Which  backside? What backside? Show me the backside. I do the sign fast"!!! I have not as yet fathomed the strength within me which helped me not to burst out laughing, rolling on the ground with unbridled mirth.

People murder English every moment they choose to use it. "According to me", "more better", "let us gather for a party", "collecting postal addresses of all faculty members with their phone numbers" are dropped like birdseed, with nary a consideration for the decent, correct usage. Full of ambiguities and ambivalences, for example, the sentence quoted here is.

How do people go for a Ph.D. with such a 'hold' over English? They, moreover, have the gall to blame their circumstances. Everybody has huge difficulties of all sorts in the personal arena. Why tomtom such constructs? Instead, why not spend a year working thoroughly on the basics of English, and only then think of a Ph.D.?

Let me give you my own example. I know Japanese rather well. I have studied it up to a level of proficiency which can be considered equivalent to M.A.-I. My score was a decent Distinction. Even then, I will not think of a Ph.D. in Japanese. 

Even if I were to go for it because some lucrative position was on the anvil, I would spend at least six months (or even a year) working on, improving my Japanese. I would surely not blame my origins, my so-called poverty, and so on. As it is, if  I could study up to my post graduation, it would mean that there was a support system in place.

Why play the victim card? Who stops you from working on yourself or from improving your usage and grammar of the language at least for thirty minutes a day? Why be, for example, a Science  student with a doctorate in microbiology if you cannot understand the fact that the contents of two brands of analgesics produce the same result! 

Such examples ruin the very meaning of a doctorate, and belittle the very concept of education, confirming the general perception that doctorates are for sale! In brief, such scholars may think of themselves as great successes earning huge salaries, moreover;  but they reduce the very concept of education in to a total failure.

Pratima@True, the English ruled India very harshly. Does that mean we should ride rough shod over English via inane usage such as "don't open your mouth", moreover, calling our own poor grammar/usage as 'Indian English', all along glorying in our status and wealth, while all the while, we '"do the talking and talking of English"! What usage, huh!?!

Friendship

 As August 6 gets celebrated as the Friendship Day, here is this acrostic (attempting after many days!) about the concept called 'friendship'. A word or two before trying it though! 

In my opinion, most people, as is the wont with many such market driven campaigns, wax eloquent about friendship fashionably. Most are fair weather friends though. They are, moreover, your friends as long as it suits them. They can discard you any second like a much worn(e), torn trousers, however upmarket these be currently!

Remember Aesop's fable about two men wandering deep down the forest, the huge bear chasing them, one scurrying up a tree leaving his hapless 'friend' to the mercy of the fierce beast? What was the moral of the story? Worth a thought indeed! Beware of the frenemies! Since we mention the animals here, better to remember that there is nary a more devoted friend than the faithful family pet. Truly cares for you!

In my opinion, the real friends who genuinely care for you are the immediate family. Despite any ill treatment, (un)intended insults, major/minor misconceptions, parents and siblings would stand by you. Blood is thicker than water, and needs no such dilutants as creature comforts or monetary conveniences. For people for whom such concerns matter, you are just a useful tool, suitable to their own causes.

Finally though, the best companionship is with one's own self, I believe. There are no deceptions here. There is just more n deeper understanding, authentic n forthright re-cognitions, and superb n sure depth of peace n contentment. What say?

Now the acrostic!

Fabulous n fervent

Resilient n rational

Intelligent n imaginative

Encouraging n enthusiastic

Naughty n nutty

Dedicated n driven

Scintillating n sincere

Honest n human(e)

Innocent n inspiring

Person!

Pratima@ A friend is a friend is a friend. Has to be! Hence in the last (and the best) analysis, it better be the self. What say? 

The Hiroshima Horror

 The World War II was  truly tragic because it annihilated forever the limits mankind had till then humanely imposed on its selfhood. The very Enlightenment dialectic the West paraded proudly consisted of the winning of the rational over the so-called 'animal', over the instinctual in the definition of the 'human'. The very narrative of 'progress' was from the cave man to the superhero, if Nietzsche is to be presented a little simplistically. In a way, it is clearly reflected in the colonial context as well, but it is too vast an idea to be contained in this blog.

The  World War II demolished forever the (hi)story of human amelioration. Two terrors stand out in the multiple acts of inhumane inanities. The first and truly tragic is the Holocaust. It is a sad saga of racial injustice and discrimination born out of scapegoating an entire intelligent intellectual creative community. It shows how societal and religious misconceptions can be stoked against a weak prey, a sincere, sensible victim, an easy target.

The gypsies, too, were butchered precisely for the same reason, for standing out, for being different from the banal, for appearing to be a mystique that needed to be vanquished, given its allure. Extremely sad and cruel tales of horrific harassment and inhumane torture are the holocaust lives. 

Yet two issues stand out in these horror narratives that can comfortably shame any Gothic novel. The first one of these is the gentle grace and winning wisdom of the survivors who continue to be generous and kind despite having to bear bestial brutality. The second point is that the victimiser is always a sadist with a solid inferiority complex that is externalised as crooked cruelty.

Hence after such crushing cruelties of multiple types, the victims' post traumatic tales are full of genuine decency and unfathomable (meaning both difficult to understand and countless) goodness. There are a few but equally heartening stories of some Germans who in every possible way, despite the dangers, helped the victims, the Jews.

The Hiroshima horror, however, is far more dangerous because it involves the eternal ethical issue facing every new invention, the human(e) value(s) lost, the price paid while furthering scientific advances. In the much publicised post "Eisenhower"era, we understand how inflated egos of inventors/scientists, how political ambitions and  financial equations result in a tragedy whose civilian horrors haunt even after more than seven decades. The American Dream, at times I feel, was forever tarnished post the exposure of this ugly underbelly.

On August 6, the Hiroshima Day, this tribute to commemorate the ever resurgent human spirit that rises from ashes the phoneix  way!

Pratima@ "Crazy crude cruelty, thou better be exterminated" is the message of the World War II, especially the Hiroshima and Holocaust horrors.

The Mosquito Menace

 Come  ye, monsoon, and bring along thy friend, mosquito. This is supposed to be the theme song of the July-August era every year. Like the drip-drip pitter-patter rain, the weird shehnai that the female mosquitoes play almost right in to our ears soon gets beyond ignoring. 

Thus, to tackle the mosquito menace, sometimes people pump like mad; at times,  fight with the air with the electric bat as if it were a sword. Sometimes, the folded newspapers can smash a mosquito battalion at a go. I am not very good at this warfare. I prefer Odomos, and the good ole Good Night coil or its mat version.

Many people have to have the fan full blast on, even when it is raining like crazy, because the mosquitoes, it seems, choose to bite them despite the Odomos. Must be a particular odour their body releases, given their own unique chemical 'lochya' in the blood stream.

Mosquitoes love our ears, right? There is an African folk story about it which I translated in to Marathi. It was one of my first published stories. In fact, a set of five of these translations was published in "Kishore". Earlier, my 'poems' were published in the school magazine, but this was the first publication in a professional mag. I was in my mid-teens. Felt rather elated.

The original African story is quite some fun. It seems, the mosquito fell in love with the ear, and declared its passion. Given its skinny, thin avataar, the ear was highly amused, and dismissed the mosquito. So, it seems, the mosquito eternally buzzes past-n-around the ear to declare its living love as the ear happened to mock its death like appearance!

Such stories apart, I have always wondered at the mosquito's ability to fly up the high rise apartments. The critter may be small ( in Spanish, 'mosco' is a fly, and the suffix 'ito' indicates its small size), but it has the gall to fly to the twenty-fifth floor as well.

In brief, the mosquito, like the cockroach history, proves nature's mystery! Well, given the diadem they have formed above my head, I better immediately apply a thick coat of Odomos. Hopefully, it would be a good night, despite the mosquito music!

Pratima@ Mosquitoes may indeed be deadly/but they prove natural 'survival' truly! 

The stem of education

 The term 'education' etymologically comes from 'educare'. It is Latin in origin. It means to lead, to take out of. Education by definition takes you out of ignorance, and leads you towards light, the light of knowledge, the light of wisdom, the light of truth. That is the stem of education, the core, the real value and meaning of education, whatever be the branch.

This definition seems to be changing drastically now. To begin with, everything now has to have a utilitarian purpose. To be relevant at all is to be useful.  Given such a scenario, 'stem' now is an acronym. The full form would be science, engineering, technology, mathematics/medicine. Undoubtedly, all these,too, do have the base of intellectual exploration. 

Primarily though, education as per this definition of the STEM is use-oriented, and hence market-driven. It is noteworthy that in such a scenario, interdisciplinary studies would not even be 'Liberal Arts'! Rather interdisciplinarity would mean a cross of medical technology, a cyborg, for instance. 

 Yet another "in" branch is management. Noteworthy by absence is the branch called humanities. Even therein, such quasi-technical areas as Economics, Psychology do carry some weight. Language, getting more and more hieroglyphic under the influence of emoji writing, has very little space in this scenario, and literature, almost none. Sad in an era dominated by communication.

YES, people seem to be reading a lot. It is either pop literature or the p.d. (Personality Development) or the DIY (do it yourself) stuff. Serious literature, not much required in the Times of Millions of Mobiles that are a gateway to 'entertainment, entertainment, entertainment ' 24 x 7 non-stop, now with the OTT, not to forget 'all' types of sites/vlogs, is getting more and more elite, esoteric, exclusionary even when it deals intensely with most seminal issues. 

None is concerned though; especially not Language/Literature departments, lost to cheap politicking, third rate infighting, and baseless  'me alone' oneupmanship! The stem is indeed rotten!

Pratima@ This is not  Plato's cave.  Neither is it  the dark before the dawn. It is the dusk that settles in to the dark night!

Taking a stand

 To take or not to take a stand can never be a question. You have to take a stand to be called a human being. 'Why so', is that your question? Well, I would say it shows you have certain principles you live by. When you take a stand, you prove that you are not a weathercock who moves the way the wind blows. 

Such gimmicks may appear successful initially. In the long run though, your credibility as a human being, as a professional is completely lost. Nobody takes you seriously. Nor do people value you, forget highly. They may not say so to your face, but behind your back, there would always be a smirk nichered.

Does taking a stand mean being stubborn? Does it mean being rigid? Surely not! You do believe in co-operation. Co-existence is your motto, too. Yet there are certain below your dignity compromises you would not accept, come what may. 

In my opinion, forget human beings, even animals take a stand. 'This far and no further' is the limit we have to follow not only with wild animals, but even with the pets. If you have a cat at home, you would have noticed that she allows you to pet her as per her standards! A pet dog, whatever be the breed, is the gentlest of the beings. Yet if a person repeatedly rebuffs, ill-treats him for no rhyme no reason, for no fault of his, he would not tolerate it. He takes a stand, he is consciously aloof from such a person!

Let me give you an example. If a person is consciously ill-treating you even when you have not harmed him/her, even when you have turned a deaf ear to the nasty rumours and rants against you he/she spreads, yet this person is  trying his/her level best to consciously belittle and humiliate you constantly, should you take all this nonsense just because none is ready to support you against the bully, even when you are absolutely in the right?

That is taking a stance. As a nation, for example, we stand up to Pakistan and China, individually, and both of them as a front.  Remember, we did not mind; in fact, stood up to the American-European specious arguments and pressure tactics regarding  India's Russian crude  oil requirements which were  validly established much prior to the Ukraine war. In brief, sincerely, without arrogance, standing up to what you believe in makes you decent, trustworthy and respected. So to take or not to take a stand can never be a question! That is because by not taking a stand, too, you are taking a stance!

Pratima@"It is easier to go down the hill than up. But the view from the top is better," says H.W.Beecher.

Breathing is being!

 Which is the best gift we alone can give ourselves? It is the breath. Breathe in and breathe out is that 'taken for granted' but vitally important process that defines our very existence. One breath the less, one breath indeed is the case that can be the end of our story.

I know the feel. On March 26, 2021, very early morning at about 4.30ish, Aai was there, and just a few minutes later, there was no breath. Even now I choke on my breath, as I did during her ninth day ceremony, when I think of that eerie feel. 

Very many are the enemies of that fragile organ called the lungs that help us breathe in and breathe out from the minute we are born to the second we die. Yet hardly do we care for our lungs. Smoking is how some of us choose to commit suicide slowly, but surely. Even if you have not fallen a victim to the allure, forget 555, even one time, passive smoking is hyper dangerous.

This passive smoking is in the form of inhaling involuntarily the excessively polluted air that surrounds us. As it is, given the urban life style, the individual immunity is minimal most. Given the constant attack on the poor lungs, they literally cave in.

It is a medically researched and established fact that lung cancer incidences are on the rise, not to forget that ole guest in the body, tuberculosis. But natural is this sick feel  because most people have forgotten to breathe the natural way, cooped up as they are behind closed doors, with the air-conditioner on, and inhaling even the God would not know what all! They think they thus show off their modern, sophisticated, rich life style. Actually, it is a silly exhibition of their total ignorance!

As breathing is being, how to help our lungs in such dis-eased times? Eat healthy. Control the stress levels. Most importantly, perform pranayam and "omkara" recitation as often as is possible. Well, none knows when which breath would be the last one. Better hence to breathe healthy till we can!

Pratima@ One breath the less/can completely impair that grace/called being alive n healthy/breathe well n deep, and thus be truly wealthy!

www.wonder.com?!?

 August 1. It is Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak's death anniversary. Recently, however, on July 26, I dedicated an entire blog to the memory of Lokmanya. Surely, Lokmanya Tilak is a theme that literally is as deep as the ocean and as vast as the sky. One can write a blog entry each day throughout the year, and yet there would remain much more to explore. One can, however, enjoy such an exploration if a blog were not to be a public space. Well, the reader response matters, hence!

Instead today I am going to write about the world wide web. This scientific technological development truly changed the very profile of the entire world. Earlier Descartes would write, "I think, therefore I am." Now the axiom is, " I use the world wide web, therefore I exist."

The world wide web is indeed a wonder web. It has literally made the whole world in to a village, with all the negativities of a village, too; gossip of the fake news variety, the dirt of the dark webs of all types variety, the narrow lanes of the site crash variety, and so on. Like a village, here, too, there are crude bullies of the vulgarest type.

In other words, in this third decade of the twenty first century, the wonder part of the www revolution appears a little jaded. The negativities of this world wide web have started getting on many nerves indeed.

Even then I would say that it is not the fault of this technological wonder. It is the sick mentality of some cheap users that is at fault. Yet again hence we would have to use the analogy of the genie in Alladin's lamp.The genie is absolutely innocent. It is the owner of the lamp who uses it like a devil. 

In other words, in this post "Eisenhower" period, we have to yet again grant that a technological wonder such as the world wide web is a gift, and wonky human beings better overcome their wicked ways of the world so that spaces for goodness and creativity spread world wide!

Pratima@ "Science is a way of thinking," says Carl Sagan.