Three types of human activity

The first type is most predominant & solely devoted to making money. Nowadays even education, instead of seeking knowledge, is only a means to get into a lucrative profession. The only thing which differentiates humans from animals, i.e., curiosity about the external world, seems to have been given the go-by.

The second type is the one devoted to getting higher social status (which may also be viewed as the refined version of the "pecking order" present in animal society.) The quest after it is rightly called "the rat race." As long as these two, money & status are garnered, most may even prefer to remain blissfully ignorant & illiterate, as far as they are concerned.

The third & really important human activity is the one where people spend their own good money to indulge in it. Common examples are religious activity (though mostly it is indulged in to get worldly benefits like health, wealth & status.) The other recent addition to the popular activity is travel for its own sake, as a means of enjoyment. Amateur cultural activities like buying & reading books, attending music performances, buying records & audio equipment, learning music as an amateur, buying artworks (not as an investment with an eye on future increase in price.) are an indication of true interest.

As earning money being the primary goal is the theorem of human geometry, its corollary is that spending money on an activity  indicates the real interest of a human being.

Concept of Heaven in different religions

In Hinduism, Swarga is Heaven, ruled by Indra, a Vedic God. It is a place of sensual delights where souls of virtuous people are believed to go & stay until their merits are exhausted & they have to be reborn. It is to be noted that Indra is not one of the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu or Shiva & also not one of the ten divine incarnations of Vishnu. The Ultimate goal of a Hindu is not Swarga but Moksha, liberation from the cycle of birth & death. It can be noted in passing that residence in Swarga is temporary & Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth, is notoriously fickle.

The Christian idea of Heaven is also non-sensual, because The Virgin Mary, who had to watch her son being crucified at a young age, is called "The Queen of Heaven." This idea is also reinforced in Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress" where the Pilgrim Christian's goal is "The Celestial City", the abode of God, who is believed to have sent his Son, Jesus Christ to earth.

In Quran (56:3), it is stated that people will be divided into three multitudes after death: those on the right (blessed shall be those because they go to Jannat, the Islamic Heaven of sensual delights); those on the left (damned shall be those because they go to Jahannam, the Islamic Hell of endless pain); & those to the fore (foremost shall be those because they shall be brought near to Allah.) The third group are believed to be the Sufis, also called "Tasawwuf." These are also engaged in "The Higher Jihad" which is spiritually purifying oneself. It is quite clear that Allah does not reside in Jannat, the Islamic paradise.

Twenty first Century Ultra "Slave Labour"

In the American plantations, slave labour was bought & overworked. As they were bought, if they were worked to death too soon, one had to buy fresh labour. So seven years work (to death) was the optimum period arrived at. If they lived longer, they would not be cost-effective!

In post industrial England, there was no slavery, but "free" children, women & men were available in plenty. If they died soon, one need not buy others, as there were plenty more where they came from, readily available.  The American slaves had to be fed even when there was no work. The English poor could just be turned out into the street during slack period to fend for themselves. At the peak of this system, small children were worked to death under the whip, so much so that it was said that industrialists wore out nine generations of population in one generation. So capitalism was infinitely worse than slavery. 

Appalled at this state of things, the visionary Robert Owen, a Welsh industrialist himself (not a labour leader or communist, mind you) pioneered the  International Labour Organisation mandated 8 hours as the maximum working day. This can be treated as an Universal Human Right.

But after the second world war, to reconstruct their shattered economy, the Germans started working longer hours.  Appalled at this, the German Philosopher Josef Pieper, wrote a book "Leisure, the basis of Culture", where he critiqued this short sighted route to progress. He underlined that sufficient leisure is absolutely essential to maintain one's humanity.

This pernicious doctrine has raised its ugly head in post pandemic India now. The hard-earned humanistic social progress of centuries globally is now thrown to the winds under the guise of strengthening the nation by a few captains of industry. Are they to be  lauded for this or rather considered eligible for prosecution under International Law for human rights violations?

Quintessential Non-romantic Love Story

L. M. Montgomery's "Anne of Green Gables" is the rarity referred to in the title. Unlike the traditional love stories, which concern themselves with only the romance between the hero & heroine, here different facets of human love take centre stage.

To start with is the unselfish love between the middle aged, unmarried siblings Matthew & Marilla. Instead of being frustrated & irritable, they are at peace with themselves & their world. 

With the arrival of the unwanted orphan Anne Shirley, who from the beginning loves them, as she comes from a horrendous background, the dynamics change. Matthew is sympathetic right from the start, while Marilla takes her time. But her feminine, unrequited maternal heart is also soon conquered.

Then there is the friendly, sisterly love between Anne & Diana, which progresses in spite of initial external hiccups. Though beginning with a stormy start, the love between Anne & the older ladies Rachel Linde & Josephine Barry strikes root firmly & becomes enduring.

Only towards the end of the book, the embryonic romantic love between Anne & Gilbert makes its beginning. In spite of it, Anne rejects a lucrative college scholarship to be with the aging Marilla in a supreme act of selfless love.

The Myth of Truth in Love & Religion

The major preoccupation of Western literature & cinema is romantic love often touted as the only meaning of the word love. Frequently it is designated as the "true love" when one has presumably found the object of one's affections. Whether it is "true" can be examined further.

Richard Bach, philosopher-author of "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" married 4 times including the longest lasting one of 22 years with Leslie Parrish whom he designated as "soulmate" & celebrated his "true" love for her in "A Bridge Across Forever". He was earlier also married. After 22 years with Leslie, his "soulmate", he divorced her & married 2 more times. One may wonder what happened to his soul, whether it was split into pieces like the Horcruxes in the Harry Potter stories.

Even among human love, which is arguably neither true nor lasting, including the much touted maternal love, romantic love may be less strong than filial or sibling love in many cases. Even in Western literature, this is occasionally depicted.

Divine love is the highest form of love, declare all the religions of the world. From the Upanishads to the New Testament & the Quran, it is reiterated. This is also reminded by Saints & mystics of all religions. 

Now about religions, each of the Abrahamic religions, which comprise the highest number of adherents, claim themselves as the only "true" religion, implying that the others are false. This highly arguably tenet, was first publicly repudiated by Swami Vivekananda, who in spite of being a Hindu monk, famously said that all religions are true. Depending on the varying needs of the people, living in  different places at different times, different religions arose to satisfy those needs. Instead of celebrating the essential unity of the human race despite their diverse religions, claiming their own as the "true" religion & themselves as the "Chosen People", is both irrational & dangerously divisive.

Three monkeys & the Media now

Three monkeys of the Muromachi period of Japan depict the saying "See no evil, hear no evil & speak no evil." Mizaru is shown closing it's eyes, Kikazaru it's ears & Iwazaru it's mouth. They were later used by Mahatma Gandhi to illustrate his philosophy.

But unfortunately the present day news & social media are engaged in doing precisely the opposite. Even when something good happens, (God knows it is rare enough!) it is completely ignored, & pushed under the carpet, as it were. Mendacious & egregious behaviour is presented as the "new normal." This has engendered a vicious circle of news reflecting unsavoury life & life imitating such news.

Because of the ease in which one can air one's views on any subject, (whether one has necessary knowledge or such remarks are called for) every one talks (or tweets!) through his hat! Besides being a waste of time, needless acrimony is generated. Also it has become exceptional for people to see the good in others, so busy are they in vituperation. The biblical quote of "the mote in one's own eye" is all but forgotten. The golden adage of being silent if one cannot speak good of others is a memory of a distant golden past.

Andersen, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky & Rowling

The not so well known neo-classical ballet "Le Baiser De La Fee" (The Fairy's Kiss) by Stravinsky is based on a chilling story by Hans Christian Andersen. Rudy, as a baby is separated from his mother, who dies of grief. It is caused by an evil fairy. Later Rudy as a young man, falls in love with Babette, a miller's daughter. But the evil fairy covets him & kills him with the kiss of death. 

It was composed on the 35th death anniversary (1928) of Tchaikovsky, whom Stravinsky greatly admired. The themes are wholly derived from the early chamber music works of Tchaikovsky & orchestrated by Stravinsky. It is in one act & four scenes.

The story is similar to Harry Potter, whose mother Lili was killed by Lord Voldemort. But unlike in Andersen's story, Voldemort did not succeed in killing Harry, but was killed himself instead.

Can Regression be confused with Progress?

"Satyam Vada Dharmam Chara" says the Taittiriya Upanishad. The Ninth Commandment of Moses says "Do not lie." In the Gospel according to St.Matthew (5:33-37), Jesus explicitly prohibits lying. In Quran (4:135), it is exhorted to "bear true witness, even though it be against yourselves, your parents or your kin." Nearer our own times, Sri Ramakrishna stated "Truthfulness is the true penance to be undertaken in the Kaliyuga."

In spite of these exhortations spread across all religions, truthfulness has become a liability rather than an asset in worldly life. But in spite of it, human behaviour, initially akin to animals, gradually refined itself into a more civilised, self-restrained pattern. Proximity among genders also achieved a golden mean of fastidiousness, to achieve a stable, durable society. 

From the 20th Century onwards, many of these restraining behaviours were thrown off in the name of social progress. It became fashionable to be "permissive". What were  considered aberrations earlier were the "new normal" & were even introduced into the law books.

The greatest regression currently under way is the work hour week. At the start of the industrial revolution, workers, including women & children were literally overworked to death. Spearheaded by Robert Owen, an industrialist himself & not a labourer, the 48 hour week came into being. Later it became an international law under International Labour Organisation. This achievement after more than 200 years of struggle, is now being thrown away, reverting the hapless workers into the barbaric ages when the taking of a loaf of bread by the hungry attracted the death penalty. Instead of punishing the exhorters as violators of human rights, it is being discussed as a viable option. 70 hour work week should be shared equally by two employees, not one.

It is a travesty of truth to say that we have progressed as human beings, when actually we have regressed by becoming less truthful, less cultured but more exploitative. 

Disposable Income vs Disposable Time

In his essay "On Enterpreneurship" (contained in his excellent book, "A Better India A  Better World", NRN writes very pertinently that "The only way we can solve the problem of poverty is by creating jobs with disposable incomes." Here "disposable income" means the residual  income left over after meeting the basic cost of food, clothing, housing, educational & medical expenses. An admirable definition no doubt but begging the question of whether doing whether such created jobs, should also create "disposable time" after work.

After all "Man does not live on bread alone" as said by Jesus Christ (Matthew 4:4). The only difference between humans & animals is what can be called "Culture." Josef Pieper defines culture as Divine Worship & allied interests as the fine arts & sports, which may be economically unproductive. These are the only things which enable us to rise above our animal nature. The urge to survive, reproduce oneself & occupy a position in the pecking order (status) are those we share with animals.

"Disposable Time" is as essential as "Disposable Income" to lead a full cultured  human life. That is why even a "workoholic" like Sir M Visweshwariah, started the Century Club. After a day of earning "disposable income", a person should spend his evenings of "disposable time", pursuing active sports, which may be as effective & more enjoyable than the currently fashionable Yoga classes or working out at the gym. Also no people die playing sports unlike the current deaths of celebrities after gym!

The earlier sounds of children learning classical music in their homes in the evening has vanished along with the chirping of the common sparrow! Children heading to coaching classes instead of playing fields after school is shameful. This vicious circle of philistinism has engendered a generation which would not know what to do with their "disposable" time, even if they had it. Alcohol abuse, watching unworthy films & commercialized sports has become a part of obsessive overwork not a panacea to it.

Creative work as opposed to Servile work has been appreciated by Pieper & the noted designer & author William Morris. Though specialisation has led to increased productivity (as shown in the famous example of making pins in Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations"), it has destroyed the creative spirit which set apart humans from animals. Fortunately the developed West has recognised this & added sports, music & languages to the school curriculum.

Our elders were well aware when they coined the adage "All Work & no Play makes Jack a dull boy." It is a dystopian world indeed if it comprises humans unable to enjoy DVG, Mozart, Ravi Shankar, Raphael or Ray. To sum up, disposable income can be earned back but never disposable time!

Vanished Indigenous Games

These were prevalent about 75 years ago among small boys. Though cricket & football were known, they were played only by adults in an organised way. Kids could not afford them.

The first was called "Chinni-Dandu" in Kannada. Chinni was a small wooden piece tapered at both ends. Dandu was a longer stick used to hit the Chinni placed on the ground at the tapered end & hit it farthest when it rose in the air. If missed, the boy's turn was over. If hit, the process was repeated at the spot where the chinni had travelled. The boy who hit the longest continuously won, the total distance being measured by the dandu.

Then there were glass marbles hit with the forefinger bent back. The object was to reach the "baddu", a hollowed depression in the ground.

The cigarette pack covers were collectible & won by a game consisting of hitting a heap of them with a square metal piece.

Spinning tops spun with a thin rope wound round them, were a lethal weapon in destroying others' spinning tops by the sharp metal tips embedded in them.

Interestingly, these games had seasons of their own when they would be universally played by all by an unspoken agreement. They were never played together! They were also gender specific. 

Girls were not playing them but restricted to their own Hop Scotch (Kunte-Bille in Kannada). Interestingly, hop scotch is played all over the world by girls, as seen in numerous films, where they are shown playing it on the side-walks. Even in Rowling's "Fantastic Beasts", a girl plays it alone, singing a sinister song about witches!

Under appreciated Genius of Inga Moore

Inga Moore (1945 - ) is a children's book author & illustrator in the tradition of Beatrix Potter (Peter Rabbit) & Jill Barklem (Brambly Hedge). Even though she illustrated an early edition of "Anne of Green Gables", due to the small format of the edition, her illustrations did not get full credit. 

However with the publication of Kenneth Grahame's "The Wind in the Willows", the large page size allowed effective integration of text with more than 100 mind-blowing illustrations of Ms.Moore. Though Arthur Rackham & E.H.Shepard among others had illustrated this book, Inga Moore's  impressionist style illustrations took the book to a stunning level. It sold more than a million copies.

Frances Hodgson Burnett's "The Secret Garden'', received similar lavish treatment of illustrations, though a tad less effective than the "Wind" because of poorer layout.

However "The House in the Woods" & "Moose's Book Bus", both written & illustrated by Moore, have really large page sizes, bringing out the full beauty of her art. The minimal text depicting idyllic woods with lovable animals make up an utopian dream world.

However it is incomprehensible that she has not been awarded the prestigious Newbery or Caldecott medals for children's books & illustrators nor mentioned in either "The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature" or "The Cambridge Guide to Children's Books."

Post war Germany & 21st Century Bharat

After WW 2, there was hectic reconstruction of the economy by Germans, who were already noted for their industriousness. Their workaholism was catalysed by the "Protestant Work Ethic" by Max Weber (1864 - 1920) which combined the Capitalistic mindset with the lessening of Divine Worship practised by the Catholics.

Understandably upset, the Catholic Josef Pieper produced his "Leisure the Basis of Culture" in 1947. As opposed to the "Live to Work" motto of Weber, he resuscitated Aristotle's motto of "Work to have Leisure." Here Culture is derived from its root "Cultus" which means Divine Worship. Later its meaning expanded to embrace all Creative work in the arts as opposed to Servile work undertaken for monetary gain at the behest of others.

Here it should be made abundantly clear that leisure does not mean the present day weekend spent in mindless travel and/or binge TV watching or drinking. Leisure is only worth its meaning when it is not a break from work in order to go back to it rejuvenated, in which case it is just an adjunct to work.

In 21st Century Bharat, there is a similar glorification of work for its own sake. Governments are considering 12 hour work days & Corporate Barons are glibly talking about 14-16 hour workdays as if the only goal of human (?) life is Wealth Creation.

We share the instinct to preserve our life, feed ourselves, have a pecking order (called "Status" in human society) & reproduce ourselves with other creation. The only distinguishing difference of humans is the capacity for Divine Worship & interest in the Creative arts. If there is no time or inclination for these, we are no better than we should be.

To conclude, we can heed Pieper, who warns that unless we recover true leisure - the ability for silence, contemplation & insight; for receptivity & intuitive openness to truth - & replace our frenetic amusements & relentless striving, we will destroy our Culture & Ourselves.

Teen Angst in Ancient India

Teen Angst is a term much bandied about these days about the preoccupations & sufferings of teen agers. A peek into the life of a couple of legendary teen agers in ancient India may give a fresh perspective into this.

The first is Nachiketa whom we meet in Katha Upanishad as a teen ager who was troubled not because of teen angst but when he saw his father giving away useless cattle as charity. He repeatedly questioned his father as to whom he will be given away. Exasperated, his father, said "To the God of Death". Nachiketa took his words literally & went to the God of Death & persistently questioned him about the secret of life. The God of of Death was pressurised to impart the way of Liberation following which Nachiketa was enlightened.

The other teen ager was an unjustly marginalised character in Ramayana, Shravan Kumar. His only angst was how to take care of his parents. Due to circumstances leading to a misjudgement of Dasaratha, the father of Rama, he lost his young life. His parents cursed Dasaratha that he also suffer & die because of the separation from his son Rama, which came to pass. In hindsight, one can imagine that but for this curse, Rama might never have left his father & later killed Ravana!

The important point is to realise that both Nachiketa & Shravan Kumar were not afflicted either with Teen Angst or the almost mandatory preoccupation of dating taken as a necessity by contemporary teenagers, but had a higher angst on their minds.

Even though he was married, it is sacrilegious to suggest that Yagnavalkya had dated his two(!) wives Katyayani & Maitreyi before marriage. Nearer our time, though Sri Ramakrishna himself suggested the name of his future consort, Sri Sarada Devi (18 years younger to him & a child bride of 5!), theirs was a true ideal marriage of the souls, where the wife is only a "Sahadharmini" or a companion along the path of Dharma.

We are proud of being a progressive society, who have reformed Hindu Society & become modern. Is it really a progress or  actually a regress that we have institutionalised instincts which we share with animals & forgotten what has set us apart from animals in the true evolutionary ascent of Man?

Chatrapathi Shivaji & the Prophet's Niece

There is a story about Shivaji defeating a Muslim King in a battle. The Muslim princess, peerless in beauty, was brought before Shivaji as a gift. He looked wonderstruck at her beauty & remarked that if his mother was of comparable beauty, he also might have been handsomer! He sent her back to her family laden with gifts as a tribute to her beauty.

The Governor of Kerala, Arif Mohammad Khan, has narrated the story of the Prophet's Niece, stunningly beautiful, refusing to wear a hijab. She said that Allah has blessed her with beauty, & she wanted people who see her beauty to think of Allah, who created her!

This attitude of looking on female beauty as a creation of God & an aid in turning the mind Godward, as a spiritual option is being forgotten nowadays.

"Tiger Mothers"

Tiger Mothers are defined as mothers who recognise talent in their children & then relentlessly pressurise them to perform.

One of the earliest known examples is the mother of the legendary child star, Shirley Temple. John Ford, no lover of child stars himself, had to make a film with her. At the end of the shooting, he was so impressed that he nicknamed her as "Single Take Shirley!" The reason was her mother who would coach Shirley on her lines to perfection before she gave her take!

In the biopic made on Saina Nehwal, the badminton star, her mother is shown as giving the little girl playing Saina a stinging slap, as the child runs upto her & proudly announces that she has got second prize. The slap was for not coming first!

In the film adaptation of the classic "Three Men in a Boat", one comes across the most extreme Tiger Mother. The three men visit Bisham Abbey in Marlow, where there is a statue of Lady Hoby, who was a noted scholar in Greek, Latin & theology & expected her children also to be similarly brilliant. So she beat her little son to death for not doing his homework properly. The statue shows her kneeling piously with her other children, who presumably did their homework properly!

"Though she be but little, she is fierce."

The above quote from Act 3, Scene 2 of  Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream", could well apply to Belinda Fell, a rough tough little girl of seven, whom we first meet on the pages of Rumer Godden's "Miss Happiness & Miss Flower".

Nona Fell, an English child who lived in Coimbatore, is brought back to England on her mother's death to live with her cousins, the youngest of whom is  Belinda, who is not happy with Nona's coming. However because of Nona's accommodating nature, the cousins manage to live together.

In the sequel, "Little Plum", they get aloof snooty neigbours called Tiffany-Jones. However after an unpleasant accident, Miss Tiffany-Jones invites Nona to tea to meet her young niece, pointedly ignoring Belinda, who is dressed in a crooked beret, a dress with wrong buttons, a trailing muffler, wrinkled socks & muddy shoes. On Nona's asking whether Belinda can come too, Miss Tiffany-Jones rudely refuses, saying Belinda is too rough. Belinda's face goes scarlet as if she had been slapped & Nona also colours as she refuses saying she doesn't go out to tea without Belinda.

However, it is discovered at the end of the novel that the snootiness was due to Miss Tiffany-Jones, the spinster sister, who was keeping house for her brother, as his wife was in hospital. After the return of the friendly Mrs.Tiffany-Jones from the hospital, the domineering sister was driven to the railway station (in a Rolls Royce!) & the neighbours settled down cosily! 

Under-appreciated Works from Popular Creators

Paul McCartney's "Standing Stone" is a purely orchestral work with choral voices. Being a Rock musician where appeal is primarily verbal, to compose a more than 75 minutes instrumental programmatic piece is nothing short of extraordinary. But it is unfortunate that it has not been as popular as his rock albums.

S. L. Bhyrappa is the most popular & critically acclaimed Kannada novelist of the present day. But probably his Magnum Opus is "Truth & Beauty", his doctoral thesis on Aesthetics, a branch of philosophy. He himself has admitted that writing it has taken more effort than writing his acclaimed novels. Though Kuvempu & DVG had earlier written on this subject, they did not delve as deep as Sri. Bhyrappa.

Mark Twain (psuedonym of Samuel Longhorn Clemens) is a famous humorist, known as the author of "Tom Sawyer" & "Huckleberry Finn." But he himself has admitted that his best work is his biography of Saint Joan of Arc, called "Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc." He said "It furnished me seven times the pleasure afforded me by any of the others: 12 years of preparation & 2 years of writing. The others needed no preparation & got none."

Daphne du Maurier, author of the Gothic Classic "Rebecca", also wrote a short story called "No Motive." It is a superb detective story on par with the best of Christie, Marsh & Tey. But it does not seem to be filmed. However Malayalam director Pavithran has filmed an adequate adaptation called "Utharam" starring Mamooty.

Tsundoku & the Magpie Mentality

Tsundoku is a Japanese word for buying books without any intention of reading them. There are many reasons for this apparently meaningless habit, the prime one being the possessive instinct. In this aspect, it is similar to the hoarding instinct ascribed to the magpie. In fact Rossini even composed an orchestral overture called "The Thieving Magpie." Other reasons may include the wishful thinking that the unread book on the bookshelf may eventually goad one into pulling it out & start reading it!

This mentality seems to have invaded the vinyl LP buying public also. It is believed that about half of vinyl LP record buyers in USA, do not even own a turntable!

So one can take the only consolation from the above that the buyers at least economically support the book & record industry while denying themselves the cultural pleasure of reading the book or listening to the record.

Religion as a mere adjunct to Worldly Life

In John Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress", dealing with the spiritual journey of "Christian", he meets a "Mr. Worldly Wise-Man" of the town of "Carnal Policy." Christian tells him about the burden of sin he is carrying. Mr. Worldly Wise-Man directs him to a town called "Morality", where dwells a "Mr. Legality", who will help him get rid of his burden. He has a son, "Civility", who can also help him.

However, before Christian could go on this false way, he meets "Evangelist" (True Spiritual Teacher), who guides him back to the correct way.

Later, Christian meets "Money Love" who says: To become religious is a virtue, by what means soever a man becomes so. It is lawful to get a rich wife, or more profit. The man that gets these, by becoming religious, gets that which is good of them that are good, by becoming good himself; so that here is a good wife & good profit by becoming religious, which is good.

Even though Bunyan wrote the book in 1678, its relevance is evident even now, as the function of religious leaders of all denominations is viewed as helping people in their worldly problems, rather than giving them spiritual guidance. It is sad to see them as talking like Mr. Worldly Wise-Man, Mr. Legality, Mr. Civility or Mr. Money-Love rather than as true spiritual advisors.

Two Germans with contrasting views

"The Protestant Ethic & The Spirit of Capitalism" (1904) by Max Weber, a German Protestant, glorifies economically productive hard work as a pre-requisite of Capitalism. This seminal work also influenced N.R.Narayana Murthy of Infosys. Basavanna, the 12th Century social reformer & religious leader also held similar views. He said "Work (by itself) is  Kailasa" (abode of Lord Shiva) not just a way to attain Kailasa. The noted playwright Girish Karnad attributed the prosperity during Basavanna's time to this ethic of hard work.

On the other hand, "Leisure - The Basis of Culture" (1947) by Josef Pieper, a German Catholic, propounds that it is leisure leading to culture, which makes human life worthwhile. It should be noted that Pieper, being a Catholic, places the Contemplation of God at the top of Cultural activities. Workoholism leads to absence of leisure & hence denying Cultural Life, which is the sine qua non of human existence, without which human life may self-destruct. Bertrand Russel, in his "In Praise of Idleness" (1935) also advocated a four hour workday as quite sufficient to fulfil our needs, the rest being leisure to be spent on cultural activities. Of course, Lord Russel, being an atheist, did not suggest contemplation of God in leisure!

The most pathetic sentence of the 21st Century

How many times a day do we hear this sentence "I don't have time"? Arnold Bennet, author of the celebrated novel "The Old Wives Tale", also wrote a small book "How to live on 24 hours a day" more than a century ago. 

He said that "Essentially, you do have time; you just don't realise it. We never shall have any more time. We have, & we have always had, all the time there is". He proceeds to analyse what the average man does after  work, & proves he wastes at least 6 hours before going to bed. He also adds that one can get up at least an hour earlier in the morning.

For Homi Bhabha, the nuclear physicist, the arts were not just relaxation, but as essential in life as physics & mathematics. He felt art was what made life worth living. He was an avid painter & connoisseur of Western classical music. Raja Ramanna, also a nuclear physicist, was an accomplished pianist. Sudha Murty, the busy philanthropist, just gets up an hour earlier in the morning, to indulge in creative writing. What is badly needed is not extra time but focus & mental discipline to make the best of the time available.

In more recent times, Katherine Rundell, author of the award winning "Rooftoppers", became a Fellow of the All Souls College at 21 & later produced a doctoral dissertation on John Donne. She also learnt to walk a tightrope forwards, backwards & in high heels!

Allan Rusbridger, who was Editor of "Guardian" during the Wikileaks period & was working a stressful 14-16 hours a day, also managed to squeeze in piano playing & managed to learn the fearsomely difficult Chopin Ballade No. 1.

Such being the case, the commonly used words "passing the time" & worse "killing time" assume a sinister meaning. These ways of spending time are nothing less than  criminal.

The same people who claim to have no time, will find time fast enough if there is money to be made or status to be attained! And all this to gain what Luke 16:15 says  "What is esteemed among men, is an abomination in the sight of God." The same thing was said by St.Teresa of Avila in other words. "More tears are shed over answered prayers than over unanswered ones." Because in our ignorance, we always pray for things which are harmful to us in the long run. Even in Hinduism & Islam, the only efficacious prayer is submission to God's Will.

So to conclude, the best human activity is contemplation of God, followed closely by cultural activities, to indulge in which "when there is a will, there is a way."

Civilisation & Education

At the outset, it is clarified that the two are not synonymous. Many civilised persons may not be formally educated & many "educated" persons are far from being civilised. For example, the egregious "dog walking couple" in recent news, despite being educated & having cracked the difficult UPSC exam, behaved in a way, which can hardly be called civilised. In contrast, Salumarada Timmakka despite being un-educated is highly civilised. Education without civilisation, will only produce jumped-up little upstarts who become tin-pot tyrants.

The hallmark of a truly civilised person is the way in which he/she behaves towards those who are hold a difference of opinion with them.

1. No personal invective to be used.

2. No raising of voices at any cost.

3. Semantically correct words to be used. For example, in a case of road rage, the other is neither a fool or an idiot, but only a careless driver at the worst.

4. Only the differences to be pointed out without using intemperate language or in any way offending the other.

5. Always make only accurate, factual statements, which one can write down & authenticate with a signature.

6. In case of irreconcilable differences, one should agree to disagree, without grudges or subsequent ill-will.

7. Respect for human dignity to be always preserved even in case of those not agreeing with one.

8. This can be considered as an extension of the Hippocratic Oath sworn by doctors, (where they swear to treat even their sworn enemies like their own loved ones), being extended to all fellow humans in all circumstances.

It is unfortunate that many politicians, guardians of the law & even sportspersons, in spite of being "educated", now fall quite short of being labelled civilised by these criteria.

A noted industrialist, groomed a man to be his successor. They fell out later & the industrialist was the only man not to condole even the accidental death of his one time protege. A badminton star was the only one not to congratulate the international win of her one time junior.

Respecting human rights is an essential part of being civilised. It may be noted in this context that even the accused is seated in a chair while giving his/her testimony in U.S.A. courts, whereas the accused is made to stand in Indian courts.

Aristocracy of Culture

An Aristocrat is generally understood to be from an (erstwhile, in these democratic times!) royal family or those with wealth & status. If closely analysed, however, birth does not necessarily make a superior being, as pointed out by Thomas Paine in his "Commonsense."    The shenanigans of the few extant Royals amply bears this out. Nowadays wealth is owned even by the Mafiosi. As regards status flaunted by Captains of Industry, Senior Civil Servants & Political leaders, it is only a human variant of the despicable "pecking order" in the animal & avian kingdom.

The true goal of human life, according to Hinduism, is no less than self-realisation. However, as it is very difficult to attain, (remember the story of Dhruva, who did not attain it immediately, as he had desired kingdom first), the next best exclusively human need is the quest for culture, i.e., knowledge (books), music & other fine arts. In ancient Hinduism, a cultured person had to be learned in 64 arts! Even in Victorian society, a gentleman or lady was conversant with literature (remember Maryanne & Col. Brandon continuing the poetry lines quoted by each other in Jane Austen's "Sense & Sensibility"!), could play the piano & even sketch a little.

Even now, Murakami, the famous Japanese author, has an audio system comprising Thorens & Luxman Turntables, Accuphase & Octave Amplifiers, Tannoy Berkeley & JBL  Speakers & more than 10,000 LP records.

Unfortunately in India, even the very wealthy, cannot think beyond owning ostentatious houses & fleets of luxury cars. One iconic Bollywood star, though owning a library, was so neglectful that he had housed it in his basement, which was flooded in the Mumbai rains!

The true aristocrats now are those who can  enjoy reading great literature, listen to music regularly & appreciate great art. If they can write creatively, play an musical instrument or paint a little, so much the better.

Universal Aesthetics

According to Baumgarten (1714-1762), the founder of Western Aesthetics, the object of logical knowledge is "Truth"; the objective of aesthetic knowledge is "Beauty". Beauty is the perfect perceived by the senses. Truth is the perfect perceived by reason. The good is the perfect attained by the moral will.

Lord Shaftesbury (1671-1713) felt Beauty is known only by the spirit (unlike Baumgarten who postulated that Beauty is perceived by the senses.) God is the principal Beauty - the beautiful & the good proceed from a single source.

This is more similar to Hindu thought which equates Satyam (Truth), Shivam (God) & Sundaram (Beauty).

In Kannada Literature, even though Kuvempu & DVG have written about this subject, the in-depth study is the doctoral thesis of S. L. Bhyrappa, "Truth & Beauty." It is so comprehensive that it covers everything from the beauty of babies to the beauty in Beethoven's String Quartet op.135!

An extremely erudite volume on this subject is the little known work of Leo Tolstoy, "What is Art" in which he firmly repudiates the thesis of Art for Art's Sake. He views Art from a Western Christian point of view & presents an iconoclastic, polemical viewpoint.

Value of Art (die Kunst) in Goethe's "Faust"

WAGNER: Ach, Gott! die Kunst ist lang;

und kurtz ist unser Leben.
Mir wird, bei meinem kritischen Bestreben,
doch oft in Kopf und Busen bang.
Wie schwer Sind nicht die Mittel zu erwerben,
durch die man zu den Quellen steigt!
Und eh' man nur den halben Weg erreicht,
muss wohl ein armer Teufel sterben.


English translation by Bayard Taylor.

WAGNER: The rhetor's art is long,
and life, alas! is fleeting.
Yet, often, when my critic-duties meeting,
in head and heart I know something's wrong.
How hard it is to compass the assistance
whereby one rises to the source!
And yet, before they've travelled half the course,
must most poor fellows quit existence.

Farcical Tennis Matches in Classic Films

In Jacques Tati's Classic Comedy "Monsieur Hulot's Holiday" (1953), Monsieur Hulot buys a tennis racket & the saleswoman shows some whimsical moves with it. Armed with it, Monsieur Hulot starts to play with women & dumbfounds them with his unique serve, which is unreturnable (like Pete Sampras' who was unique in serving aces even on his second serve.) Frustrated, the women retire & men arrive to play him. They are also flummoxed by his unimaginable serve!

In Michaelangelo Antonioni's first English (1966) film "Blow Up", at the end of the film, the photographer hero of the film comes upon some people who are miming playing a tennis match, without a ball! After watching them sometime, he is also drawn into their surreal world by running after & retrieving an imaginary ball hit out of court!

Mr. Dombey & Mr. Soames Forsyte - A Study in Contrasts

In Dickens' "Dombey & Son", the rich Mr. Dombey wants his son to inherit his business & carry on the name. But the boy dies early. His sister, Florence, loves her father, but is rebuffed by him. After the death of his wife, Mr.Dombey marries again but his wife elopes. He also loses his wealth. But Florence, married to Walter, socially inferior, traces out her father & looks after him lovingly.

In Galsworthy's "The Forsyte Saga", the rich Soames marries Irene, but treats her as his property & wants a son from her. Irene leaves him & marries his cousin Jolyon. Soames marries again & has an only daughter Fluer. But when Fluer grows up, she falls in love (unknowingly) with Irene's son Jon. Because of the family feud & following Jon's unwillingness to hurt his mother, Fleur marries Michael Mont, without passion. 

So in Dickens' book, Mr. Dombey realises his daughter Florence's love for him & lives happily with her. But Soames' daughter Fleur has to give up her true love Jon, just because he is Irene's son, whose mother left Soames.

Yasujiro Ozu's own "Teen Kanya"

"Teen Kanya" (1961) was the omnibus film based on three Rabindranath Stories made by Satyajit Ray to commemorate Tagore's birth centenary.

The first story, "The Post Master" deals with Ratan, a little village girl, who is the household help of the village postmaster. The second story has Manimalika, a rich man's wife, who is utterly obsessed with jewels & ornaments. The third story has the  hoydenish Mrinmoyee, entrapping the most educated man hailing from her village as her husband.

In Ozu's first colour film, "Equinox Flower" (1958), the three daughters are contrasted in character, attitudes, & action: Fumiko has left home to live with her lover, Yukiko stays at home dutifully with her inn keeper mother, & Setsuko tricks her father into letting her marry the man of her choice. (From "Ozu & the Poetics of Cinema" by David Bordwell.)

The difference between Ray & Ozu is that Ray has picked three females of different age & social status (in different Tagore stories) whereas Ozu's three women belong to the same age group & similar social status.

Shankara's "Neti, Neti" applied to Films & Cricket

As Jane Austen would say, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that" Indians are crazy about Films & Cricket. But they undergo an identity crisis when talking about these passions. The following have to  be emphasised when talking about Films.

1. They are not the Producer to talk about the money made by the film.

2. They are not the Director to remark on how the film had to be made.

3. They are not the actors to decide on how it had to be acted.

They are only the Viewers who pay to watch the film & presumably enjoy it. Period.

In the case of Cricket, again,

1.They are not the Selectors to comment on the team selection.

2.They are not the Captain to remark on the tactics on the field.

3.They are not the Coaches to brief the players.

They are only Viewers who pay to go to the stadium (or watch on TV) to enjoy the game & nothing else! Period.

So instead of wearing the masks of others, holding fast to our identity as viewers only will help us to enjoy the film or the game as Shankara advised against identifying with the body or senses but identify as the soul, in order to obtain Self-Realisation.

This is also the starting point of both Ramana Maharshi & Sophie Amundsen. Whereas Ramana Maharshi went on to become a realised soul after asking himself "Nan Yaar?" (Who am I? in Tamil), Sophie Amundsen, a fictional 14 year Norwegian schoolgirl, received a mail asking "Who are you?" in Jostein Gaarder's best selling book on Western Philosophy, disguised as a Detective Novel, & got an interesting course on the subject.

Living on Alms as a Spiritual Discipline

This was widely practiced around the world, regardless of the religion being followed. In Hinduism, it was called "Uncha Vritti" & probably the most well-known practitioner was none other than the great composer Saint Tyagaraja. In fact even the Lord Shiva, after whom Tyagaraja was named, was pictured practising the same in "Bhikshatana Shiva" a painting in the Vijayanagar style, found in Lepakshi, 16th Century. (Vijayanagara Paintings by C. Sivaramamurti).

In Jainism, the Thirthankaras followed it.

The last thirthankara, Lord Mahavira, was said to accept alms only under six conditions.

1. The donor should be a princess.

2. Her head should be shaven.

3. Her ankles should be shackled.

4. She should be fasting.

5. She should offer boiled lentils with one of her feet inside & the other outside the house.

6. She should have tears in her eyes.

As Chandanbala (600 B. C.), a born princess, fallen on hard times, satisfied all these conditions, Lord Mahavira accepted alms from her. Later she became his disciple & founder of the nuns (Sadhvis) order in Jainism.

In a startling similarity in Christianity, St. Clare (1194-1253) who was one of the first followers of  the famed St.Francis of Assisi, was the daughter of a Count, who said she would marry only Jesus Christ. She was permitted to start the order of "Poor Clares" a sisterhood whose credo was living only on Alms, manual labour, coarse clothing, no footwear, vegetarianism & sleeping on the bare floor.

Incidentally, Elizabeth Gaskell has written a short story on them called "The Poor Claire". The society at that time supported them & highly venerated them.

Even the present Belur Math, head of the Ramakrishna order had its humble beginnings in the Baranagore Math, where Swami Vivekananda & his fellow direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna, lived on alms.