The post on concepts raised considerable dust. It reminded me of a school essay wherein the essayist had mused on the way mankind treated virtues. Man, he said was theoretically oriented towards virtues but in practice the vices prevailed over him. It was for this reason, the essayist remarked, that whenever some men displayed and demonstrated virtuous living, man was prompt in placing them on a pedestal, worshipping them or even converting them to God or messiahs. To this effect, he cited examples of Gandhi, Buddha, Mahavira, Jesus among others. He also observed that the tendency was to glorify the person to enable oneself to continue to be in the vice grip. Any analogy could then be conveniently avoided and the grip of the vices could continue to rule the roost.
The essayist was brilliant to say the least in his observations. A simple glance around would tell us that we worship these icons of non-violence. But, pray, how many of them adhere to it? The time for introspection has come. We must introspect. All scriptures teach us that introspection is the best teacher and the greatest reformer. However, we spend time in picking on others. Instead of worshipping these icons and trampling on their virtues would it not be the fitting tribute if their concepts were practiced or improved upon?
This, of course, leads to the next question as to how is this to be put across to the multitude. The best way one can put it across undoubtedly is to demonstrate the strength of these virtues and the ease with which it can be practiced. The simplicity would lead to a demonstrative effect. It could be argued that these icons were simple but their virtues are laid to dust. It must be comprehended that in their times they did reach to the multitude effortlessly. The vaccuum lies in the successors not adhering to it and choosing to celebrate anniversaries and remembrances.
In this background, one must try to analyse the result of pathbreaking ventures such as the movie 3 Idiots. The movie has taken on a system. At the end of the viewing one should ask these questions:
1. How many were inspired by the movie to take on the system?
2. How many liked the movie but would not venture to take on the system?
3. How many told their children at the end of the movie that the marks
would still count for their wards?
4. How many disagreed with the movie's concept openly?
5. How many agreed with popular perception but were against practicing it?
These would in effect reveal how much impact the movie had on the mindset of the people. The movie was largely peraonality oriented and not concept oriented from the public viewpoint. They would celebrate and fete Hirani, Aamir Khan and Chetan Bhagat but would not celebrate the concept. If the mindset were to be motivated to celebrate the concept and as an ancillary celebrate the peraonalities who personified such concepts then world would be a better place to live in.
Cabuliwallah of Rabindranath Tagore celebrates the love for a child by a stranger from a faraway land. A child lover would understand this emotion and then say that he is reminisced of the Cabuliwallah of Tagore rather than state that Tagore was a child lover and he needs to be celebrated, feted and the love for the child be forgotten. Tagore loved children, no less than Nehru but it is Cabuliwallah who personifies the love for children and the concept would live on till the love for a child exists.
A discussion with a colleague of mine threw up another interesting facet. Intelligence, she said, can be developed but not integrity. Integrity needs to be inherent and imbibed. At best a person can play an influencing role and nothing better. Intelligence is now restricted to celebrating the individuals and burying their concepts alongwith their bodies. The intention is that the concept should live on.
As pointed out in the ocmment, Krishna only gives the gist of the knowledge already in the Upanishads and Vedas in the Gita. The philosophy of Gita is to be taken and practiced. Whilst celebrating these concepts, we could pay our tributes to Krishna along with the Rishis and others who have given us this treasure. We owe our tribute to them but what matters is a fitting tribute which would only arise out of the concept being celebrated and not the individual. Aamir Khan would be happier if Lagaan won the Oscar rather than a best actor award for him. Similarly, Gandhi and Martin Luther King would have relished and cherished the day Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize had it not been as a war President. We have a living legend in Nelson Mandela who has celebrated tha concept of non-violence. Let us make a beginning to celebrate concepts. Once we do so, we would gradually learn to appreciate the concept of any individual irrespective of his status in society.
The story of Kanakadasa and the Kanakanakindi is told several times over to relieve us from the belief that one is superior to the other. It teaches us that there is a lurking danger of being humbled if we proceed on the strength of assumed superiority. But we celebrate his anniversary and proceed to differentiate. Have we learnt our lessons? Should we not make a beginning?
As I sign off I hope that the process of thinking will further gain momentum from the comments.
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