“No
Plain not followed by a slope
No going
not followed by a return
He who
remains preserving in danger
Is
without blame
Donot
complain about this truth
Enjoy
the good fortune you still possess” …….I
ching
After a long hiatus of three months, I have
started to write this post. Thanks to my dearest friend, who inspires me every
day and makes me feel special. As usual, as a prelude to what I am going to
discuss, I share an anecdote (that was not so long back) etched in my memory
timeline.
In one of the PSD sessions at Infosys –Mysore,
I was in orientation for my new job. There was a task on public speaking. We
were asked to choose our own topic and speak for 2 mins in public. I
enthusiastically rose up fighting the post-lunch Coma and started talking
impromptu:
“I would like to talk about the topic- My
dreams and fantasies. Well, I have been a dreamer all my life, learning new
things along and hoping to reach my fantasy destination. By profession, I am
working in IT but recently I have developed a flair for writing- penning my
thoughts and opinions. I like to express human feelings, emotions and tell stories
just like writers do!
So I started to think I would be a writer
someday, if not in this life may be in the next one (if there is one) –I
wouldn’t stop dreaming.”
Believe it or not! I didn’t know that I was
going to say what I had said. I never made up my mind words-they just flowed from
my tongue. May be I was giving mouth to my to-be-happening events. I was
supposed to take up a technical (coding) role. I left Hyderabad campus for
Bangalore campus presuming to work in a technical role of my choice. However,
fate had it – ended up consenting to a functional role, which involved lot of
writing, testing and talking to clients. I said to myself that destiny counts more
than will sometimes.
Uncles, Aunts and
Mosquitoes:
One often wonders at the age of 15,
how one can take decisions that dictate the rest of one’s existence on this
earth. My point is about the choices made by me, rather made for me by my
parents. Of course, they want the best for their beloved kid. Hence, seek the
advice of so-called aunts and uncles. They simply make a whizzing sound saying
that is good for you, not good , great , money is lacking, that is
impossible…blah..Blah, biting you like a mosquito with their opinions and
eventually contracting malaria.
Point is they know very little about
yourselves but feel they know the ways of the world and shove your throat with
their advice, completely ignoring that you are the one who is swallowing the
pill of precarious future. Those decisions are like dirty catalysts, which run
a complex chemical reaction that is irreversible –forming the permanent
compounds that are incapable of mutation.
Chelation of White collar Identity:
I always wanted to study medicine.
Unfortunately, I realised this after making irrevocable moves.Nevertheless, I
sat for my JEE exam with half-hearted & disconcerted effort only to score a
dismal yet qualifying mark sufficient enough to fetch me a B pharm at BHU: An
opportunity to study cellular biology and become a scientist at CCMB.
I was determined to go but again
fate had it – succumbed to parental wishful rhetoric- “Mera beta sirf engineer
banega!” . You know why 3 idiots had been such a run for your money.
So far Destiny has ruled the roost of this post.
Will and water turbines:
However, without any will we
cannot put any concerted effort in any direction, let alone dreaming.
It is like running the water
turbines in hydroelectric plant .You know that water runs the turbines
providing mechanical energy, which is converted into electrical energy by
producing induced electricity. Running turbines is our exercising will and generate
electricity ie., our destiny.
Justifying the title:
Discussing about Will to power
without looking at Nietzsche’s doctrine (notoriously insane philospoher) is as
good as thinking that ‘Dirty Picture’ is dirty without ever watching it !
(Thanks to those sleazy
vidya Balan’s posters
at Malls).
Nietzche will to power says-
The world is conceived as a monster of energy, of
conflicting forces and drives striving for power, of an underlying principle
that explains all events and actions.
That humans are
always attempting to inflect their wills upon others.Every action toward another individual stems from a
deep-down desire to bring that person under one’s power in one way or other.
Whether you are giving gifts, claiming to be in love, praising and harming the
psychological motive is same: to exert one’s will over others.
Therefore, it is a life affirming view, you affirm your
instincts to acquire power and dominance and suffering is not seen as evil, but
as a necessary part of existence-to be embraced.
So lasting pleasure and satisfaction come about as a result
of being able to live according to one’s instincts.
Personal pilgrimage of our
Dam(n)mad life:
Yes, our life is a pilgrimage- A
journey that is inevitable to be made. It could be either smooth, bumpy or
wrought with pain, suffering and misery. However, it has to go on – Sun has to
rise in the morning whether the climate is cloudy, sunny or windy.
We meet people–the fellow pilgrims- on the way. We tell our
stories to one another and search for some meaning in our paltry journey,
rationalizing the choices and justifying ourselves of the past. We realise that
we have to tread on our own path not bothering whether someone is following
your trail or you following someone’s lead!
The journey could be
driven by pain, drawn by longing and lifted by hope. Whatever is the reason,
there is always this feeling of uneasiness-when you are sufficiently unsettled
to have an opportunity for growth-as being or chance for “
making the growth
choice rather than the fear choice”. This longing for the growth is the
central force of one’s pilgrimage .Thus, the pilgrim can be anyone: a reformer
striving for change in society, atheist condemning god, seeker of enlightenment
(if there is one), hedonist perving the pleasures of flesh&bone and
politician drenched in corruption. Whatever is the one you are trying to pursue
is nothing but your own self-gratification!
We always wish to grow up once again:
The beginning to a new
Ending:
1.
The Buddha, being a prince, had everything at
his disposal and so could afford to say that desires & pleasures are the
beginning of sorrow and went on to renounce- seeking enlightenment.
Where as
A beggar deprived of all worldly pleasures craves
to be rich and pursues the path as a miser accumulating as much as he can.
2.
A contented middle-class family gets devastated
mentally and financially after saving their only sick child back from chronic
sickness.
Where as
An ultra-rich family (who can afford ICU 365
x 24x7 hrs), loses their only child, cynosure of all eyes, while treating a
chronic ailment.
3.
A philanderer husband, realising the futility of
satiating the carnal pleasures through many relationships, comes clean and
renounces everything even his wife and career becomes a Sansyasi
Where as
A loyal wife, after many years of marriage,
longs for new kinky experiences in life, as she is bored with her vanilla hubby
and eventually gets busted- defeating the very purpose of exploring the
sensuality of her sexuality.
4.
An extremely talented lad breaks his back
churning out ranks during his teenage but succumbs to worldly temptations at
university-doing drugs and seeing pros.
Where as
A drug addict cleanses himself of all the
toxins and through sheer will power and family support raises himself to the
top most position- first citizen of his country!
5.
An ultra-liberal (nasty exploitative capitalist)
supports unrestricted free trade, exploitation of labour through sweatshops and
erosion of their rights. Thus, plunders the economy in a constructive way.
Where as
A hard-core leftist with his unpragmatic
clinging to age-old antics of socialistic doctrines not only stalls the
progress of the economy but also responsible for massive corruption in all
walks of public life.
6.
College-mates
turn into lovers and run to fortify a lengthy 6 yr relationship ,only to
break-up bitterly finding too many
faults in each other though they have ignored them while in relation.
Whereas
Couple made out of arranged marriage learn
to understand each other and forge a
life-long enviable relationship .
There are polar opposite situation in all of
the above-mentioned cases .But the underlying human condition is the same where
as the journey is different.
“pleasure” in case of the Buddha and the
beggar
“health” ” in case of the second case
“Hedonistic indulgence” in one’s sexuality
“Worldly booby-traps” for the young
“Widening gap between Blue Collar and white
collar”
“It’s easier to understand nuclear physics
than relationships -whether successful or failed ones”
Whatever is the inclination or motivation
for such a journey is clearly not known for the pilgrim .He/She acts according
to the instincts in pursuit of something more meaningful in life other than
what ‘is’ already present . Thus drifts from experiencing one thing to another
hoping that tomorrow would be better than today and treading the path of destiny
until he/she drops dead.
My 2 cents :
In 25+ yrs of my existence on this earth, I learnt to
believe that decisions or actions are ought to be taken from our personal
experience or intuition.
“There is nothing to be taught, but something to be
learnt”.
There is something that may happen to us,
but not if we await its coming from outside of ourselves. That is, we are the
sole creators of our own and through will we can exert our wants and fulfil
them.
Can we?
Bricks in the bottom of
the pyramid:
Every day, I drive my bro to the office in a car (as Iam
rotting at home with little work –Enjying my breakJ) . I have to yank the horn
loud to scatter the street kids (playing on the road) living in nearby makeshift
shed homes of the labour .They run hither-thither with playful mischief staring
at the car with mocking smiles and jolly claps.
I begin to wonder how much will to power they can exert to
break their jinx of their birth in a ghetto and make it to the top of the
pyramid. Impossible is my pragmatic presumption. The precarious event of birth
is defining the every step you make in life- pathetic but true.
Silver spoon Brats:
I opened that day’s newspaper and read on the front page the
theatrics of a silver spoon brat, whose security personal beat civilians black and
blue in broad day light for simple violation of a traffic rule. The arrogance
of such people and the event lead to me to think: is it not that the birth
deciding one’s ascent in life?
Reconciliation ??
How are we to understand such a complex life with apparent
contradictions. I feel there is nothing to be understood.
Do we know why we need to sleep everyday ?
Do we know why humans have only two genders ?
Do we know why only humans pray to GOD ?
Do we know why India never waged a war in its history ?
Do we know what is the purpose of our life ?
Do we know is there any life after death ?
Do we know why out of all the animals only humans wear
clothes ?
Once we are willing to give up the hope of being taught, one
start to learn one’s own. There is no secret to enlightenment on universal
truths here; if there is one then it is:When you are hungry: eat and when you
feel tired: sleep!
“If you don’t have a problem, you create one. If you don’t
have a problem, you don’t feel like living”
”------U.G krishnamurti
Why asking all these irrelevant dumb questions? Pitting destiny against ‘Will to power’ is as
absurd as asking above questions.
“You should be in a state of helplessness, then the answers
will come”------U.G krishnamurti
If you are tired then just, sleep; don’t quest Why.
If you are a male, seek a female for pleasure/procreation
and vice versa; don’t ask why there are no many genders.
If you are an Indian then think Indians are impotent
bastards! Don’t ask why no war!
If you think that there is purpose to life then tell me what
is yours! Don’t ask what it is !
If you think that there is life after death;better die now
as you are not ‘living’ it Don’t ask
Last one no need to say ..only humans wear clothes because
of the virus called ‘thinking’ that hit the human species unlike other animals.
There is no secret ingredient in the soup we eat;Nothing is
special unless we make it feel special!
Summarising the above BullShXXX
with the below CDC(cow dung cake):
This is an excerpt from a book (read recently), which I felt
apt here:
A master says- “If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill
him!” This admonition points that no meaning that comes from outside of us is real.
The bhuddhahood has already been attained by each of us.we need only recognise
it .Philosphy, religion and patriotism all are empty idols.
The only meaning in our lives is what we each bring to them
.Killing the bhuddha on the road means destroying the hope that anything
outside of us can be our master. No one is bigger than anyone else. There are
no mothers or fathers for grown-ups, only sisters and brothers.
My personal motive to share these musings at this juncture
is purely personal to my pilgrimage .But a metaphor can help you to decipher
the script:
This is my favourite one ,learnt from the autobiography of
RGV. “Naa Istam” in telugu meaning ‘My
whim’ in English) . I read it enthusiastically as RGV is a Telugu guy and has
something to tell .
He thought of a metaphor , when he had rejected an onsite
offer to gave up his career as an
engineer and to start a video parlour ,despite several free advice from his well-wishers.
“I run into a railway station and try to catch the train
that I believe takes me to
my destination
and see that it is leaving the platform moving faster and faster. I would
prefer to run along and jump in it rather than ponder thinking whether I lose
my legs
or lose my life on the rails
slipping.”
“Better jump into the bright risky light on the bank of the
river with a tiger in it rather than rot in the darkness of the mountain valley
!”………….Venkata Mujje
Finally , I end this post with a urdu couplet . which will
be cited whenever someone asks me what would you be doing is worthwile or not ?
In reply :
“Kya poochho ho haal merey karobaar
ka
Aaeeney
bechta hoon andhon ke seher mein !!”
meaning : You ask me about my business, what I have
in mind is : I sell
mirrors in the city of blind.
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