Relevance of Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" (1776) in these post Covid days

In these post-Covid days, lockdowns are applied all over the world to contain the dreaded disease. However, these are being balanced so that the economic health of the countries are not irreparably damaged. In this context, it is instructive to recall what Smith wrote about productive & unproductive labour, so that damage to economic productivity is minimised.

He thought that only labour which results in a tangible "thing" can be called truly productive. Even though his work appeared at the cusp of "The Industrial Revolution", Smith had no doubts about the primacy of agriculture as food is the primary need of man. The labour of a manufacturing worker is "wrapped up" in the thing he has made, therefore his labour is a commodity of real value. In contrast, the labour of a domestic servant will "perish in the very instant of their performance", leaving no trace of value. A man grows rich by employing a number of manufacturers; he grows poor by maintaining a number of servants."

Also the labour of religious people, lawyers, people in fine arts & armed forces are economically unproductive, because what they produce also vanishes the moment it is made (including the security provided by the defence forces!). But the compensation paid to these must come from the capital invested either in manufacturing or rents from land. In other words, if there were no farms or factories, a society could not afford these "unproductive" labours. (This aversion about armed forces arose from Adam Smith's intense abhorrence of war, which he considered a "shocking" waste of resources.)

The relevance of Smith is proved by the fact that agriculture & essential manufacturing activities are being continued with necessary precautions. As education is not directly "productive", it is being postponed.

In an interesting sidelight, he thought the seats of government were economically unproductive (& corrupt) as compared to places of agriculture & business, where people were gainfully engaged!

Sarah Gamp & Florence Nightingale

These two ladies, the antithesis of each other, belonged to the noble profession of nursing. Fortunately, the former was fictional, appearing in Dickens's "Martin Chuzzlewit", & equally fortunately, the latter was real.

Dickens memorably introduces (Mrs.) Gamp like this. "She was a lady of that happy temperament which can appear ecstatic just to establish a large & profitable connection." Her first priority in looking after a patient was to ensure endless victuals (preferably "cowcumber" sandwiches), tea & adequate liquor for herself. If the patient proved restless, a dozen or two shaking of his head by holding the collar, would be administered. If he turned giddy, as he might well be, it was all to the good. If he fainted, she knew how to revive him by biting his fingers or turning them the wrong way. After thus sedating the patient, she would settle down to her nap for the rest of the time. This paragon of nurses was too modest to sing her own praises but had invented an imaginary friend,  "Mrs. Harris", whose compliments to herself, she never tired of repeating to her listeners. Towards the end of the novel, she gets her comeuppance, being severely reprimanded to mend her ways.

Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) was also, surprisingly, a statistician, who pioneered the  Polar Area Diagram in addition to Modern Nursing & Hospital Management. Famously known as "The Lady with the Lamp", she is believed to have remained a virgin, because she felt a religious calling in her work. Her friend, the famous novelist Elizabeth Gaskell, went so far as to describe her as a "Saint."

Melville's Bartleby & Anantha Murthy's Mouni

In Melville's novella "Bartleby the Scrivener", the protagonist starts off normally enough as a clerk. But gradually he begins to refuse to work, saying "I would prefer not to." His employer, kind-heartedly moves his office elsewhere rather than evict him. But his successor, calls the police & Bartleby is imprisoned. But he declines to eat & gives up his ghost. His aberration is variously diagnosed as depression, anorexia or even catatonic schizophrenia.

In Anantha Murthy's story "Mouni", the title character is a Brahmin living on the land provided by his Mutt. But due to his cantankerous nature, ill-luck & the machinations of a rival street-smart Brahmin, he loses everything & withdrawing into silence, sits inside his house. The Mutt authorities & his other creditors bodily shift him outside the house & lock the house. Still he does not break his silence. This story was also made into a good Kannada film.

The American Bartleby & the Indian "Mouni",even though seperated by time & space, display similar reactions towards their known or unknown inner ghosts.

Great multi-volume novels

Of course, in any such list, J.K.Rowling's "Harry Potter"s seven volume saga occupies pride of place, not only because of its phenomenal popularity but Rowling accomplished the un-imaginable task of weaning the young from TV & Computer screens.

For sheer brilliance of imagination of creating a mythical world of Middle Earth, complete with its own philology, written in magnificent language (not for nothing was Tolkien an Oxford Don), the 3 volume "The Lord of the Rings" along with its simpler prequel "The Hobbit", is an epic for all time.

Tolkien's friend, C.S.Lewis created the seven "Narnia" Chronicles, in the fantasy genre for children, but they can be interpreted at many levels.

The seven volume "Remembrance of Things Past" by Marcel Proust is a literary landmark both for its evocation of a bygone age & meticulous detailing of trivia dredged from the author's phenomenal memory.

Romain Rolland's fictionalised biography of Beethoven, spread over 4 volumes as "John Christopher" spans both France & Germany in its narrative flow. Though it gathered the Nobel Prize for Literature, some portions may appear dated now.

Paul Scott's "The Raj Quartet", comprises the most painful period of the British rule in India. The unique feature of this is the non-linear narrative utilised by Scott to relate the same central events through different viewpoints.

Lawrence Durrell's "The Alexandria Quartet" employs a similar technique in that the first three volumes present the same event as viewed through three different characters.

The four novels about the disciplinarian, magical, narcissistic nanny Mary Poppins continue to enthral children of all ages.

Rumer Godden, who in addition to her normal novels, wrote seven books about the inner life of dolls, created a niche for herself.

Mary Norton, who, because of her myopia in childhood, was inspired to imagine & create miniscule human beings called "The Borrowers" wrote five novels about the tiny ones.

Fallacy of "Comfortable" Religion

When Swami Vivekananda was lecturing in USA, a person asked him "But Swamiji, following your teachings is not comfortable." Swamiji replied "It is not supposed to make you comfortable, but a better human being."

This has become especially relevant nowadays, because there are a plethora of "new age" gurus who are preaching "comfortable" religion to their legions of admirers. They need not change their lifestyle, but just follow their gurus! This is also evident in the numerous TV channels spewing religious discourses, mostly making their viewers smug & complacent about their colourless lives.

The fallacy of this becomes evident, when we read Patanjali, who (in the context of Yoga) said "Yoga Chittavritti Virodhaha". Even in Yoga, there is much more than just physical contortions. Unless there is a strong foundation of ethics, it may become counterproductive. Swami Yatishwarananda, a revered monk of the Ramakrishna Order said, "A spiritual aspirant first has to become a perfect gentleman (or lady) in the highest sense of the term, before trying to be an aspirant." Or to put it in humorous terms used by Mary Poppins, "Practically Perfect"! 

In the "Sermon on the Mount", (Matthew 6.24), it is stated that "You cannot serve both God & Mammon." It is everyone's experience that not serving Mammon is exceedingly uncomfortable. In John Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress", the protoganist, aptly named Christian, was not comfortable with his burden of worldiness, & underwent great tribulations to get rid of it. In Kathryn Hulme's "The Nun's Story", the Mother Superior advises the postulants that their life, far from being comfortable, is a "Life against Nature."

In this context, it is as well to make it clear that Piety is not a Spiritual virtue. Ravana was a very pious (& learned) man, which did not at all prevent him from acting unethically. It is futile (but comfortable!) to be a churchgoer, if one breaks most of the Ten Commandments & does not heed the Sermon on the Mount. At least the Catholics are notionally aware of their frailities, because of their Confession, but the others are blissfully comfortable in their life.

Observing the Lent austerities among the Christians & the Ramzan fasts among the Muslims, are by no means physically comfortable, but essential to their religions. It may also be mentioned in passing that following the Five Pillars of Islam may not be enough, unless the high ethical social behaviour enjoined by the Prophet (PBUH) in the Quran is also scrupulously followed.

To conclude with a medical metaphor, preaching a "comfortable religion" is like prescribing a palliative drug to a terminal disease called "Life"  where an "uncomfortable" therapeutic drug called "True Religion" (of whatever denomination) is called for. Here it may be recalled that Swami Vivekananda was the first to globally proclaim that all religions were true. This was reinforced more recently by Bhagawan Satya Sai Baba who defined Hindu as a joint word of "Hin(sa)" & "du(ramu)", i.e., one who stays away from violence (including hating other religions.)

Importance of "Vadi" & "Samvadi" swaras in Hindustani Music

The "Vadi" & "Samvadi" Swaras are the most important Swaras in any raga. If the "Vadi" is in the "Poorvanga" of a raga, the "Samvadi" is in the "Uttaranga" of it & vice versa. These are so important that even if the Swaras of a Raga are the same, the mere change of these will create completely different ragas with different times of performance.

The classic example of this is the trio of Ragas Marwa, Puriya & Sohoni. All belong to "Marwa That" but drop the Pancham. Komal Rishabh & Dhaivat are the Vadi & Samvadi of Marwa which is an evening Raga. Gandhar &  Nishad are the Vadi & Samvadi of Puriya, which is also an evening raga. Tara Shadja &  Gandhar are the Vadi & Samvadi of Sohoni, which however is performed between 4 to 5.30 A. M. according to B. K. Roychaudhuri. (Dictionary of Hindustani Classical Music.) In addition, there are other differences in "Sancharas" these three ragas, which are beyond the scope of this essay, which only points out the importance of Vadi & Samvadi.

A clear idea of the three Ragas can be obtained by listening to recordings of Pandit Ravi Shankar's "Marwa", Ustad Vilayat Khan's "Puriya" & Pandit Nikhil Banerjee's "Sohoni."

Effect of Western Classical Music on a mind inhabiting a consumptive body

Thomas Mann wrote "The Magic Mountain" (1924) for which he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. It describes the stay of a young Engineer, Hans Castorp, who visits his cousin in a Swiss Sanatorium. However, shortly after arrival, he also is diagnosed with an incipient form of consumption & stays there for 7 years.

The most "magical" chapter of this book appears towards the end of the book, when the managing doctor orders a record player (then a novelty)  & a set of 144 records (total playing time around 15 hours) to entertain the patients.

The other patients quickly tire of the novelty, but Hans Castorp takes upon himself the task of organising & playing the shellac records. These comprise the whole gamut of Western Classical Music from Offenbach's Overtures, Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro", a Soprano singing airs from "La Traviata" & lilting melodies of Viennese Waltzes. There were also single movements from symphonies & concertos.

So addicted was Hans that he played it till late in the night & went with a consumptive flush to bed, where he dreamed of the magical musical box. On getting up, he would listen some more before breakfast. After dinner, he would be joined by some desultory wandering listeners who would drift away after sometime.

But for Hans Castorp, this opened up a wonderful new world of the greatest music, spurring his imagination & memories.

The "Lucy Syndrome"

In the popular cartoon series "Peanuts", Lucy is a crabby little girl, who is particularly harsh on her two younger brothers, Linus & Rerun.

This type of assertive, overbearing older sister is quite common in literature, the most famous being Pip's older sister (in Dickens' "Great Expectations" with whom he has to live after losing his parents & is famously "brought up by hand." by her .(An euphemism for administration of corporal punishment.)

In one of James Herriot's stories of rural Yorkshire, we meet a spinster daughter, who is virtually ruling the roost over her parents & stalwart younger brothers.

In Rumer Godden's popular novel "Little Plum", a wealthy man & his little daughter

are ruled by the much older spinster sister of the man, (who had also brought him up), because his wife is hospitalised for a long time. It took the discharge of the wife from the hospital for the man (& his daughter) to throw off the yoke of the older sister (& aunt)!

To end on a personal note, this writer was acquainted with a family, which had a daughter & two younger twin brothers. During a visit to their house, it was surprising to see the first action of the daughter on returning from the school, was to rap both her brothers on the head! The three children would also visit us to play Carrom, as we had a board. It was gradually realised that the game was just an excuse for the daughter to punish her brothers!

Fortunately, these were just childhood pranks, which she outgrew as all the children grew up.

"The Borrowers" An Existential & Quantum Analysis

The subject books are a series of 5 novels written in the middle of the twentieth century, ostensibly for children by Mary Norton. The Borrowers are Lilliputian humans who lead a parasitical existence in the nooks & crannies of houses of normal families, living on their leftovers, without being seen by them.

The books deal with the trials & tribulations of these euphemistically named "Borrowers" in dealing with the larger predators like cats & ferrets (life & death problems) & also the exploitative humans, who may imprison & exhibit them for monetary gain. (loss of liberty.)

Here the "Existential" problem, which is a philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence raises its head, as these creatures experience "existential angst" which is a sense of dread, disorientation, confusion or anxiety in the face of an absurd world, which seeks to physically (by predatory animals) & mentally (by exploitative humans) annihilate them if they are unfortunate enough to be "seen."

This danger of being "seen" or observed by others can also be compared with "The Observer Effect" of Quantum Mechanics, which postulates the disturbance of an observed system (in this case, the "Borrowers") by the act of observation itself (by animal predators or human "beans" as they refer to human beings jocularly), the disturbance in this case potentially leading to extinction of their race.

D. H. Lawrence & World as Illusion

"He found himself in a void. There was no Time only Space. Who could say his mother had lived & did not live? She had been in one place, & was in another, that was all. And his soul could not leave her, wherever she was. So much, & himself, at the core a nothingness."

"Mother", he whispered "mother!"

The above are the searing last lines of "Sons & Lovers". Even though it is considered a classic of Oedipal Fixation (& Lawrence himself hinted at it), a close examination of the above lines shows that his soul could not leave her's, putting paid to the Oedipal theory, which can be only corporeal.

A more logical argument would be the illusory nature of the world (a void as Lawrence puts it) as propounded by Shankara "Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya". Or to be more literal, Lawrence momentarily had an Advaitic experience "Mathru Satyam, Jagat Mithya!" (or the world was a void without his mother). As unfortunately the Western mind is not trained to grasp higher spiritual ideas, he might have ascribed his feelings to purely Freudian analysis.

The Hindu practice of "Madi" in Covid times

The relevance of "Madi', though much reviled, has come back in medical guise in these troubled times. Even in the western Mother Goose nursery rhyme of "Mulberry Bush", the following lines emphasise hand washing.

"This is the way we wash our hands, 

Wash our hands, wash our hands, 

This is the way we wash our hands,

On a cold and frosty morning."

Of course, it can be taken to extremes like the guilt-driven Lady Macbeth's "Obsessive Compulsive Disorder" of washing off her spots of blood.

Also the avoidance of shaking hands, embracing & kissing on the cheeks is thoroughly in line with the traditional Hindu practice of folding one's hands in "Namaskara" at a distance from the other person. This is both graceful, respectful & hygienic.

The mandatory "six feet distance" was also common earlier, though may be it was observed more with persons of different social status.

The Jain Sadhus & Sadhvins also use a facial mask more to prevent inhaling microscopic germs as part of "Ahimsa."