Scourge of Omniscience

Omniscience, once reckoned an attribute of the Almighty only, has now become proletarian, especially in the digital age. Proliferation of social media platforms have made it evident that most people believe they have that quality, as they hold forth on every subject under the sun, irrespective of whether they are qualified to do so or not. It is no wonder that most of the time they are talking through their hat. Even more wondrous is the fact that instead of just ignoring them as beneath one's notice, others, probably because they have nothing better to do, answer them, making way for a full fledged conflagration out of what should be a storm in a teacup at best.

It makes one wonder people do not appropriate another Divine attribute, Omnipotence to themselves. Certainly they might have, but for the fact that, if they were to exercise it, others equally egoistic, would retaliate, & bring them down ignominiously to earth in no time!

The root cause of this may be another offshoot of the digital age, namely the decline of the reading habit. One has to mandatorily read to acquire knowledge. People are not plants to absorb knowledge through Osmosis from the surroundings. Assumption of knowledge & acquisition of knowledge are two entirely different things, the latter demanding many years of focussed, disciplined effort.

The biggest culprits in this democratic age are the politicians who, little educated & less cultured, attaining their office through the vagaries of the ballot box, go on a taxpayer subsidised ego trip, pontificating on all & sundry to their sycophantic and paid followers.

From Slavery to Sainthood

In Jain history, there is story of a princess sold into slavery during a war. A noble merchant, sensing the aura of her, bought her, took her home & treated her like a daughter, & named her Chandanbala as she would not tell her name. But his wife, being  jealous, during an absence of the merchant, put her in chains, shaved her head & locked her up & herself went to her mother's house . On his return, the merchant learnt his wife gone to her parents' house & only later of Chandanbala. Immediately he released her from the room, went to get a blacksmith to cut her chains, & gave her dry lentils to eat.

Meanwhile Lord Mahavir who was fasting, came that way. He would break his fast only on five conditions. It should be offered by a princess, with a hairless head, in chains, dry lentils offered while standing one foot inside the house & one outside & in tears. Chandanbala wanted to offer her lentils to him before consuming it. Mahavir knew she was a princess, but as she was not in tears, he started to leave. But disappointed, Chandanbala started to cry. Then Mahavir came back & accepted the food. 

Later she became the first female disciple of Lord Mahavir & started the community of "Sadhvis" (Jain nuns).

In Margaret Smith's scholarly book "Rabiya The Mystic", she writes about the legend that the Prophet himself appeared to Rabiya's father in a dream before her birth & told that she would guide Muslims on the right  path. But soon afterwards, there was a famine & Rabiya was orphaned & sold into slavery (like Chandanbala above.) Her master worked her hard until once he saw her praying & an aura around her. He immediately gave her freedom.

She led the life of a recluse, constantly praying. When asked about marriage (which is almost mandatory in Quran) she said "It is for those who exist physically. I exist only in Allah." When a Governor offered her marriage, she said "Renunciation of this world means peace, while desire for it brings sorrow." Many miracles are also ascribed to her. But her views on the miraculous powers obtained by spiritual austerities strikingly anticipate the views of the 19th Century Indian Saint Sri Ramakrishna. She lived to nearly ninety years of age & is the most well known female Sufi saint.

Inappropriate Comparisons

It is quite common to make these to prove a point. For example to prove the superiority of Indian Classical Music, it is compared to Western Pop, Rock or Jazz music. It is like comparing oranges & apples, which are quite different fruits. If one has to make a comparison, (comparisons generally being odious!) it should be with Western Classical Music. Here, even the origins are similar. Indian Classical Music evolved with the religious chants of the "Saamaveda", one of the four Vedas, the Founding texts of Hinduism. Similarly, Western Classical Music's fount was the Plain Song or Gregorian Chants in Churches.

Similarly with religions, the best practices of one should not be compared with the worst of another, but with the best of another. The best teachings of Hinduism should be compared with the best of other religions. Hindu Mystics should be compared to Christian Mystics like St. Teresa, Julian of Norwich or Muslim Sufi mystics like Omar Khayyam & Rabia Basri & definitely not with missionaries or fundamentalists.

Here, it may be noted in passing, that no religion approves forcible conversions (like the infamous Spanish Inquisition) or the Islamic ones. All the true followers were insensible of anything except to strengthen their own devotion to God rather than inducing others. Christine De Pisan, the first professional woman writer of the West, in her allegorical book on feminism,"The Book of the City of Ladies", dedicates the third & last part of the book, to describe the highest towers of the city as dedicated to the numerous mystics & Martyrs of the Christian faith. Similarly, the Sufis, the beloved of Allah, are dedicated to strengthen their faith in Him.

This parity of comparison may put a correct perspective on things, with diverse streams of thought filling into their own place, without infringing on others.

Many facets of Love

In Plato's "Symposium", after listening to many viewpoints, Socrates recounts "The Ladder of Love" of Diotima, a priestess, which grades them in ascending order of merit.

1. Love of a specific beautiful body 

2. Love of all beautiful bodies

3. Love of beautiful souls

4. Love of beautiful laws & institutions

5. Love of beautiful knowledge

6. Love of beauty itself

Here the first may be romantic love, the second may be the attraction between genders, the third "Platonic Love", the fifth "Jnana Yoga" & the sixth "Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram."

The West, probably because of Sigmund  Freud, is obsessed with the first & second types, so much that (may be) a stronger attraction due to blood relationship is also ascribed to these two. For example male kinship to his mother, sister or daughter due to shared DNA, may also be erroneously classified as Oedipus or Electra Complex.

It is curious that Greek dramatists' plays are dragged out for these but no mention is made of an "Antigone Complex." In Sophocles' "Antigone", she gives up her life to perform the last rites of her brother. She states her reason in these immortal lines:

"One husband gone, I might have found another,

Or a new child from a new man in first child's place,

But with my parents hid away in death.

No brother, ever, could spring up for me."

Here she rates brother's love as higher than husband's love or maternal love.

The use of the term "Oedipus Complex" is also semantically erroneous as he married his mother in ignorance, bowing to custom, & definitely not because he was physically attracted to her. So pervading has this myth become that even Kannada films, Puttanna's "Ranganayaki" (Oedipus) & Sheshadri's "Vimukthi" (Electra) have been made on this.

In contrast to the western preoccupation of the first two types of love, Rowling's Harry Potter though very close to Hermione Granger, feels nothing but a brotherly affection for her. Even the actor playing Ron Weasley, who actually marries her at the end, states that he was highly embarrased to kiss her onscreen, as he always felt about her as a sister during shooting the film.

All love as essentially divine is emphasised in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, where Yagnavalkya tells Maitreyi that even conjugal love is because of love between souls. Recently a Governor of an Indian State recounted the story of a beautiful relation of the Prophet going with her face uncovered, because people should be reminded of Allah, who created such beauty. Of course Hindu boys are traditionally brought up to love all women as blood relatives, i.e., mother, sister or daughter.

Unseen danger of not having reading habit

The well-known benefits of the reading habit are acquisition of knowledge, broadening the mind & keeping the brain active even in old age.

The great hidden danger of not reading is the dependence on the spoken word, necessarily by others. All information is absorbed through others' words (& thoughts). Here the speakers may have their own agenda in manipulating the information, not necessarily to benefit the listener.

This assumes alarming proportions when the subject is religion. Instead of going to the core texts & finding out for themselves the true teachings of the founders of various denominations, people tend to listen to discourses in temples, sermons in churches & minbars in mosques, where the speakers naturally twist the subject to firstly please their congregation (who may not have any spiritual aspirations but only worldly goals) & secondly to strengthen their own denomination.

The harm of this was understood by Martin Luther, who translated the Bible from Latin to German making it more accessible. Fortuitously, Gutenburg started printing, making copies more affordable. So the reform of the Church hastened.

But unfortunately even many centuries later, people throng to discourses to be fed doctrine which may be distorted at best & downright incendiary at worst. For example in Hinduism, where Moksha (union with the Divine) is the ultimate goal, what is preached in temples is piety, charity & observance of rituals. Though Rigveda may extol rituals, Mundaka Upanishad (Vedanta) says "Considering religion to be observance of rituals & acts of charity, the deluded remain ignorant of the highest good. Having enjoyed in heaven the reward of their good works, they enter again into the world of mortals."

Many religious leaders. instead of providing spiritual guidance to their followers, leading  them towards God, which is their true calling, have usurped the roles of politicians & social reformers by fighting for mundane matters like reservations etc.

Relevance of Kena Upanishad now

There is a story in Kenopanishad of how the Devas, Agni & Vayu were gloating over their victory over Danavas, saying like Muhammad Ali, how "They are the Greatest." Then God came in disguise & tested them with a blade of grass, which Agni could not burn & Vayu could not blow away. Humbled, they were told that nothing can happen without the will of God.

The same idea is in the Bible "Let God's Will be done." Pious Muslims also say "Inshallah" before any prayer. This is particularly relevant now when religious polarisation is rearing its ugly head. Kenopanishad can be interpreted to mean even the appearance of Christianity & Islam is also the Will of God, because He felt the people of those lands needed them at that time. This idea is further reinforced by the teachings of Hindu reformist Saints like Shirdi Sai Baba (who said Allah Malik), Sri Ramakrishna (who did Sadhana in Christian & Islamic way also & reached the goal), Ramana Maharshi, & Sri Satya Sai Baba (whose first task was to renovate a mosque.)

Unfortunately now, the extremist fringe of all religions have taken centre stage, being vocal in the social media as well, giving the exaggerated  impression that various religions are at loggerheads. But Hinduism, being the oldest, has always said "Sarve Jana Sukhino Bhavantu" & not "Jesus is the only way" or "Allahu Akbar" as argued irrationally by the fanatics. The real Saints of the later religions like Julian of Norwich &  Rabia of Basra have never subscribed to these views.

These misreadings of religion have been aggravated by the Hindu obsession with Goddess Lakshmi, even though fully aware that she is fickle. Matthew (6:24) says "You cannot serve God & Mammon (Wealth). Quran (102:1) "Your hearts are taken up with wordly gain from the cradle to the grave." Religion is seen only as a way of getting more worldly benefits rather than as a way of reaching God. It should be stressed that Moksha (union with God) is the ultimate goal of life in Hinduism.

In the developed countries, rise of science & subsequent standard of living, good social security, have eroded belief in God. Ironically, organised religions have become self-perptuating institutions, defeating the purpose of direct human contact with God. It can be recalled that both St.Joan of Arc & St.Bernadette were persecuted by the Church for their mysticism. Thomas Paine, a founding father of American Independence & a believer in God, had no faith in any organised religion. When religions fail to fulfill their true purpose, the law of entropy takes over & the universe tends to descend to chaos with human behaviour unworthy of the name, being accepted & celebrated.

Siblings Flavia & Miranda

William Law writes about them to highlight the differences between nominal & true Christians. But the same can be universalised for followers of all religions.

Both the sisters are spinsters, comfortably off. Flavia is constant at all places of pleasure & expense. She has everything that is in fashion. She is very orthodox, is generally at Church & often at the Sacrament. If approached for charity, if in a good mood, she may toss the supplicant a little money & tell him what a big bill for dress she has received. She also thinks all the poor are cheats & liars.

She buys all popular novels, but also sometime reads a book of piety, if is very short & can be borrowed. She is very idle but wants the poor to be hard-working. She would be a miracle of piety, if she was but half so careful of her soul as she is of her body. So she has no grounds from the Scripture to think she is in the way of Salvation.

Her sister Miranda, is sober & reasonable. When she came into an income, her first thought was how she may best fulfil everything God required of her in the use of them & thus make the best use of this short life & submit to the will of God. She does not divide her duty between God, her neighbour & herself but does everything for Him. She divides her income between the poor & herself. Excepting the plainest food & dress, she never spends on herself. Everything about her resembles the purity of her soul & she is always clean without because she is always pure within.

Every morning sees her at her prayers. When you see her at work, she is doing something that is necessary for herself or others in need. There is scarce a poor family near her, but wears something made by her hands. She eats & drinks only for sustenance. The Holy Scriptures are her daily study. She has set up twenty poor tradesmen  & educated several poor children & put them in honest employment.

When she dies, she must shine amongst the  Apostles, Saints & Martyrs, who have fought the good fight & finished the course with joy.

Disturbing Works of Contemporaries

Katherine Anne Porter (1894-1980) & Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989) both wrote highly unsettling works. While du Maurier's work is quite well known both in their literary form & cinematic adaptations by Hitchcock (Rebecca, The Birds & Jamaica Inn) & others (My Cousin Rachel, The Scapegoat), Porter's work is not so well known.

Daphne du Maurier, in addition to many novels, wrote gripping short stories, now  collected in 5 volumes. "No Motive" which can also be classed as a first class detective story, has a devastating denouement, which leaves the reader gasping, as it will not conveyed to the man who ordered the investigation. A case of a suicide, which can only be ascribed to prenatal depression, is investigated by a detective called Black, who believes, like Christie's Poirot that finding out the truth through other peoples' lies is always stimulating.

Katherine Anne Porter, wrote a single novel, "Ship of Fools", which was filmed by Stanley Kramer in 1965 with a multi-star cast headed by Vivien Leigh. But Porter was more renowned through her shorter fiction. All of them are unsettling but "He" is the most horrifying story of a mother exploiting her own simple minded son & finally when he has to be institutionalised for good. shedding crocodile tears.

Yasujiro Ozu & Setsuko Hara

Yasujiro Ozu was one of the greatest film directors in Japan, nay in the world itself. His films were completely different both in content & form from those of his famous contemporary, Akira Kurosawa. While Kurosawa used Western contemporary film techniques to depict Japanese themes, Ozu developed his own technique to depict traditional Japanese family life, centered mostly around the mother. There was a personal reason for this. Ozu was very close to his mother, lived with her, never married & survived less than two years after her death. Though "Tokyo Story" is his most well-known film, his first colour film "Equinox Flower" is probably the quintessential Ozu film. The "Tatami shot", with the camera placed on the ground at the eye level of a kneeling Japanese on a Tatami (mat) was his trademark.

Setsuko Hara (1920-2015) was a Japanese actress who had appeared in 67 films (including those with Kurosawa) before she started working with Ozu. She made 6 films with him in 12 years. Like Ozu, she never married & was known as "The Eternal Virgin" in Japanese cinema. When Ozu died, she stopped acting & became a recluse (like Greta Garbo.) Shusaku Endo, the Japanese author, wrote after watching one of her films "Can it possible that there is such a woman in this world?"

Concise Bibliography of J. R. R. Tolkien

What started out as a simple entertaining children's book, "The Hobbit", ended up as one of the greatest literary achievements of the twentieth century, the monumental "The Lord of the Rings." Though Peter Jackson's film adaptation was hugely successful, reading the classic is the ultimate transcendent experience. Later, a prequel, "Silmarillion" also appeared but was not as  accessible to the lay reader as the earlier books.

After his death, his son Christopher, compiled his "Unfinished Tales." Earlier, his shorter works were published as "The Tolkien Reader." This contained his erudite, magisterial essay "On Fairy Tales."

A superb introduction to the fantasy world of Tolkien, "Master of Middle Earth" by Prof. Paul H. Kocher provided the definitive guide to the enchanted world.

A delightful in-depth exploration of the trilogy, placing it in the context of the time & literary space was "Tolkien: A Look behind The Lord of the Rings." By Lin Carter.

A scholarly collection of studies & interpretations of the work by various contributors was edited by Jared Lobdell in "A Tolkien Compass."

Humphrey Carpenter, the brain behind the irreplaceable "Oxford Companion to Children's Literature", actually met the great man & produced the Authorised Biography of Tolkien, giving great insights into his mind.

Did Ramayan inspire the Quranic Paradise?

Even non-Muslims are familiar with the Quranic Verse: Surah 44, Verse 50:

"The righteous shall be lodged in a mansion secure amid gardens & fountains, arrayed in rich silks & fine brocade. We (Allah) shall wed them to dark-eyed houris. Secure against all ills, they shall call for every kind of fruit; & having died once, they shall never die again."

In Ramayan, Aranya Kand, when Rama, Sita & Lakshmana were wandering in the forest, they were surprised to hear heavenly music in that desolate place. A sage called Dharmavrata, who was with them at that time, told them that there is a "Lake of 5 beauties" here. At the bottom of it is a palace built by Maandakarni, who was gifted 5 beauties in return for his penances by the Gods. Blessed also with eternal youth, he is enjoying their company here."

If one replaced the "righteous" of Quran with Maandakarni of Ramayan with his penances, one can observe that their rewards are essentially the same.

Did Ray meet Ozu in Aparna Sen's "The Japanese Wife"?

Aparna Sen, a protege of Satyajit Ray, made a trilingual film of Kunal Basu's short story of the same name. Snehamoy, a teacher in a small Bengal village becomes a pen friend of Miyage, a Japanese girl. 

They become so close through their letters that they decide to marry through Post. Snehamoy refuses the marrige arrangements made for him by his Maashi (aunt), who widowed & arthiritic, keeps house for him by telling her that he is already married to Miyage.

Meanwhile, two unsettling events occur. Sandhya, a widowed distant relative with an eight year old son, arrives to stay with them & Miyage is stricken with cancer. Despite this, this platonic marriage continues for 17 years, without the pair ever meeting. Trying to contact Bengali doctors for cancer cure, Snehamoy gets drenched in a torrential rain, falls ill & dies.

Getting this sad news, Miyage travels to Bengal for the first time, & arrives with a hairless head (double metaphor for chemotherapy & old fashioned Hindu widowhood) & wearing a white sari, to be welcomed by Sandhya.

The evocation of small town milieu in Bengal is reminiscent of Ray & the restraint & faithfulness exhibited by the couple for 17 long years is surely a throwback to the stable, loving couples in Ozu's films. The surprise package is yesteryears' star Moushumi Chatterjee as Maashi!

Did Ramayan inspire Bible Verses?

In Ramayan (Kannada poet Kuvempu's "Ramayana Darshanam" epic poem) when Lord Ram is told that he has to renounce the crown & go to the forest for 14 years, he tells his stepmother Kaikeyi  not to worry because he had asked his father the very same boon to enjoy a pastoral life, but his father, apprehensive of that desire of Ram, thought of binding him here by crowning him. So her desire is for his own good & that she is his real mother. Pastoral life is not difficult but an utmost pleasure for a nature lover like him. Coarse clothing is not inferior to the crown.

Now to find the Biblical parallel, let us examine the children's classic, "Pollyanna" by Eleanor. H. Porter. The eponymous little girl, though orphaned, is irrepressibly optimistic, feeling "Glad" about even things which others may consider as hardships.  She comes to live with her aunt, who takes her in only as a duty. Everyone considers her as queer until well past the middle of the book when she meets the pastor of the town, who is deeply depressed over the conduct of his parishioners. She senses it & tells him that her own father was a pastor in dire straits but managed because of the "rejoicing texts" of the Bible (though they are not so named.) Asked further she says once her father in deep distress, counted the places where the word "rejoice" appears in the Bible & found about 800 of them. By studying those, he got courage to face life & indirectly influenced his daughter also.

How similar are Lord Ram's attitude & Pollyanna's!

Three stories about faith

"The Saintmaker's Christmas Eve" by Paul Horgan.

In a poor village in New Mexico, a visiting Franciscan missionary taught two boys, the Castillo brothers to carve statues of Saints out of wood for a living. They learnt well & after the missionary's departure, started supplying the nearby churches. Once there was an order for a statue of St.Christopher holding the Infant Christ. They did it & Roberto Castillo during delivery got lost in a snowstorm on Christmas Eve. He found the Christ Child in his arms turned & was pointing out the way. Roberto thought it was an illusion & held tight. But against his strength, the figure turned until the arm pointed the way. So forced, he proceeded in the way indicated, found the church & delivered the statue on Christmas day.

"Fireworks for Elspeth" by Rumer Godden.

In this story, Elspeth, a normal girl, gets the idea of devoting her life to God as a nun. Even though they were a religious family, all, including her mother, were up in arms against her & accused her of being selfish. One of her sisters says, "In a convent, if you like anything more than another, it is taken away." One of her aunts, who had some sense, said to the sister, "Life does that to you as well, as you will find out." When Elspeth tells Mother Dorothea about the accusation of selfishness, the Mother says "Read the Ten Commandments, they are in the right order." (i.e., loving God takes priority over loving one's family.) Also she tells Elspeth, "there will be no fireworks" when you devote your life to God. So Elspeth had to start a holy life as a nun with the ridicule & disapproval of her family.

"Our Lady's Juggler" by Anatole France.

A poor pious juggler, fed up with his hand to mouth existence, meets a monk, who invites him to join the monastery. There he finds all monks serving the Madonna in their various capacities. He is depressed that he can't do anything for Her. One day an idea strikes him & he rushes to the chapel & remains there for more than an hour. Everyday he repeats this & is happy. The others get suspicious & follow him & see him juggling the balls before Her as his offering. The others, scandalised, wanted to drag him out. Then they saw the Virgin descend from the altar & with a fold of Her blue mantle, wipe the sweat from the juggler's forehead.

Then the Prior, bowing his head down to the marble floor, repeated these words: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

"Amen" echoed the others, bowing down to the floor.

The Iliad & Ramayan: Striking Differences

Though the two are often compared as the founding epics of the Western & Hindu civilisations, there are two major differences. Even though the abduction of queens were the reason for the wars, in Iliad, Helen went willingly with Paris, whereas Sita was deceived & forcefully abducted by Ravan in Ramayan.

Also in the Iliad, when Achilles killed Hector, he pierced the sinews of Hector's feet, bound them with a thong, & tying the thing to his chariot, dragged his body all across the Trojan plain.

After Ravan's death in Ramayan, his younger brother Vibhishan was unwilling to perform his obsequies as he felt he was evil. But Rama enumerated all of Ravan's noble qualities & most importantly said all enmities should cease after death & insisted that Vibhishan should perform all obsequies with due respect.

What an unbridgeable difference in the two epics in the crucial matters of wifely faithfulness & treatment of enemies!

Stories: Underground & Over the roof

There are many literary works where the crucial action may not occur at ground level.

Probably the most famous is the scene in Victor Hugo's "Les Miserables" where Jean Valjean carries the unconscious Marius through the Paris sewers, ironically only to have him snatch the love of Cosette, from her adopted father.

The action shifts to the sewers of Vienna, where Graham Greene's thriller "The Third Man" is set. The war-time profiteer, Harry Lime, is chased through the sewers by his old time friend Rollo Martins & taken out. 

In the "Borrowers" book series by Mary Norton, a Lilliputian people hiding in the nooks & crannies of human habitations, find it necessary to escape through a sewer line when their existence is threatened by exposure & extinction.

If these are stories of the underground, one of the earliest of the airborne stories is the Greek comic playwright Aristophanes' "The Birds." Here two Athenians, fed up with Athens, persuade some birds to build a "cloud cuckoo land" in the air for their habitation.

Coming to the twentieth Century, who can forget the innovatively choreographed number by the chimney sweeps on the roof tops of London along with the iconic "Mary Poppins" & Bert?

In the twenty first century, we have Katherine Rundell writing about "Rooftoppers" French 'gamins' (urchins) infesting the rooftops of Paris. When Sophie starts "mom-hunting" & is being thwarted by French bureaucracy, she enlists the help of Matteo, the Rooftopper & is reunited with her mom.

"Divinely abled." Spiritual Connotations.

Persons with handicaps are now called "Divinely abled." The viewing of a lack of faculty as "Divine" can have wider meanings. In Hindu philosophy, the six passions, "arishadvargas", normally present in all beings, are viewed as enemies, & conquering them, a desirable spiritual objective. That is, the absence of these normal attributes, is considered as an aspect of Divinity. Regarding the most powerful of the six, Desire, the Semitic religions also concur in this, giving it an universal status. In the Bible, in Corinthians (7, 7-9), St. Paul says "I say to the unmarried, it is better to stay unmarried, like Me." In Matthew 19:12, it says "(Blessed are those), who have made themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven." Even in Islam, where celibacy is frowned upon, the Prophet himself reputedly appeared in a dream to the father of Rabia of Basra & said "Your newly born daughter is a favourite of Allah, & will lead many Muslims to the right path." When asked to marry when she came of age, Rabia said, "The tie of marriage applies only to those who have being. Here (for me), being has disappeared, for I have become naught & exist only through Allah." She is venerated widely among Muslims even now.