Dreams, Reality and Surreality

The onset of vacations is a surrealistic experience. Not only is it something that is awaited for and dreamt about for the better part of the previous month but in cases of an isolated campus like mine, its a mind twisting, dramatic experience.

The hype surrounding the last working day lived upto, the last night on campus survived, the train ride to the city in a coach so packed that several seniors spend their last train ride home standing, completed and then begins the wait for the flight to a place so different that it seems like another world.

The first day at home, I wake up lost and take few seconds to reestablish my bearings, the next  few days at home are spent sleeping, eating and generally doing nothing, a hangover from the last few days on campus spent in frantic preparation for exams, trips, farewells et al.  The next thing I know, I lose all track of time and college memories as I spend all my waking time planning for the next event to attend or the next person to meet. The first day at college is as dramatic a shift and all memory of what I did at home is lost and all focus shifts to events on campus which drives me to the central theme of this post.

In what context do I define myself?

Past, Present and the Future

In class, there was many a time when my friends and I pondered over why we studied history, boring stories about people who were now dead, countries that no longer exist and rules and regimes which have no influence in the present whatsoever. The question always met with the answer that the study of history was “To prevent history from repeating itself”, a statement made with the assumption that if man were to not be aware of what happened in the past, history would infinitely keep repeating itself, an ideology found in several religions. One which I have never fully understood. The reason being that it would require stagnation of human intellect and thought for the same decision to be taken century after century. It would need man to possess the exact same mental framework as the previous person who took the decision..... or to revere and emulate the previous person or his image that was carried forward into the future through the study of history. A contradiction which has never fully been tackled. Study of history might be the reason for repetition of history.

There’s an English idiom, “ Let the sleeping dogs lie” , and I would like to assume thoughts of egoism and superiority of races, genocide and the like were evolutionary tools necessary for survival in prehistoric times but a hell hole for trouble in the present times. It would be better off for humanity as a whole to try to avoid bringing up as a part of academic learning, instances of times when these feelings overpowered that of humanity in nations. We risk the birth of a new generation of people who hold the previous generations as their inspiration.

The Study of history to understand our past, to unravel mysteries of who we are and why we are, Study of the philosophies and methods of survival of previous civilizations, their culture and customs to further our understanding of our own past is what I perceive as its principle goal. Study of our past as an academic exercise for children who have a hard differentiating good from bad is an exercise heavily laden with risks.

The one thing that humans can do that animals can’t is to visualize the future, the consequences of decisions we make. This enables humans to think in ways different from animals whose thoughts focus solely on the present. We use history, both personal and learned as the framework for the visualization, which makes learning history an essential requirement to make a long term decision, but does a child need that? I would argue that a child should be allowed to experience as much as possible before carrying the additional weight of history.

Musings of a stargazer

The night skies, vast in its size, magnificent in its vastness, haunting in its magnificence is a sight that sends people into a trance to learn as much as they can about it and has been doing so since ages untold. The mysteries and stories of the stars transcend all boundaries and unite the sentient across the entire planet, across ages and for all we know, across galaxies. Its influence on mankind far exceed the technological advances made to try to unravel its mystery, it provokes us to think on a far more basal and philosophical note than most other stimuli.

As i gaze into the far reaches of space lying on the lawns in front of a temple, looking at the stars blinking at me and wondering at the message they wish to convey. I wonder how many people have looked up at this very same sky in search of answers, filled with hopes or in desperation. The sky is filled with patterns of stars, not constellations, but ones made by my own mind searching for sense among them. Everyday worries and thoughts ebb away from my conscience and a sense of calm and contemplation take their place. The actions of one person in this vast universe among billions of other people on a rocky planet far out in space seem inconsequential and meager at the sight of the majesty that surrounds us.

Cultural contrasts

"One does not need buildings, money, power, or status to practice the Art of Peace. Heaven is right where you are standing, and that is the place to train."
Morihei Ueshiba 


International travels tend to be an experience to cherish and learn from since its usually the first time we come across cultures distinctly different from ours. More so when that country is a country that is not frequented by people from your own country. One such country that i visited is Laos. This little known country has so far been overlooked but has incredible potential. 

The first thing noticeable on the drive from the airport is that the people in this country do not believe in rushing around to accomplish tasks, they take their time and work effectively. Being from India where a walk along a main road in Mumbai reminds you of rabbits scampering in a hurry at the sight of a predator with people in a perennial rush, The rush to get from one place to another,to accomplish something, to leave a mark, the chance to slow down did feel good, but what is more amazing is that people in Laos are happier than people in India, not having to worry as much about accomplishments. The pace of life at Laos is undeniably better and healthier than that of India

On staying for a while, i realized that in Laos, women truly run the country in all but name. The society is seemingly matriarchal with women manning establishments and running companies, again a marked departure from India where women have only recently started coming to the fore and where women security is still an issue. The freedom and security possessed by the women in Laos if allowed in India could possibly turn India into a much more stable and efficient state.

Besides these major differences, the people in Laos have system of living which is reminiscent of the older Indian system of living where people living in a community gather together and talk in the evenings, a very simple and peaceful way of life showing how technology can and does coexist with normal social interactions given the right inputs. 

After the visit to Laos  i went to Bangkok and the culture shock was huge. The huge difference in pace, the sudden increase in visible population, the traffic, the integrity of people. People in Laos are more honest than the money minded madness in cities like Mumbai and Bangkok and makes me realize its better to be happy and live a simpler life than to run around frantically trying to achieve something.

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going to fast - you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."
Eddie Cantor 

Tinted Glasses

"The history of the world is not one big book, but several small ones"
No event recorded can ever be recorded in all its glory with every shred of thought that went into making the event . Even what little of it is recorded is based on the perception and bias of the writer, since it is upto him to decide what to record and what to leave out. So, the question arises, why do we read books when we know what is recorded in them is tinted?

A single event has several ways to perceive it. For example my very act of writing an article could be perceived as boring and ordinary by people who regularly use the computer or as an extra-ordinary feat by an il-literate person. This difference stems from the surroundings that the people are exposed to.
Every book, every article of any event is one such perception of an event, it is the point of view of one person, the author.

The author, even if he tries to maintain an independent opinion on the subject unconsciously calls on his upbringing when he tries to frame his thoughts. For example, an Indian author trying to describe the Indian way of life from a visiting tourist's point of view will unwittingly use a few terms that lie well outside the vocabulary of most tourists, simply because those are used frequently in his interactions

The simplest but not very time-saving way of going about this is to read as many books as possible about a certain event. Since, every book you read paints your perception of an event in its own tint, reading several books, each with their own distinct tint will paint a reasonably accurate picture of the event. The problem with this is, fairly obviously, the number of books that cover the event should be fairly large and should each have a different perception making it very time consuming.
The other solution which is much more challenging is to take a book, preferably of one who has attempted to remain objective about the event ( again, tough since events that are worth recording usually tend to bias people either for or against is ) and deconstruct the book within the psyche of his mind. Meaning that we first have to analyze the thoughts of the author through the rest of his books and using what is learned through that, attempt to workout the content of the book that isnt biased. Easier said that done.

Or as they say, let bygones be bygones, forget the event, pick up a fiction, play songs and let the world go round.


Music to listen :

Inspiration

'' Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. ''

To the inspiration of this blog-

You possess in you a spark which if you let grow is capable of unleashing an incredible lightning.  Don't lose it in the chaos you are in.
I need an inspiration.  ;-)
Keep writing!

 
''I never really sit down to write. When I'm moved, I do it. I just wait for it to come. You just hear it. I can't really describe writing. It's in my head.''
-Lenny Kravitz

Insomniac Thoughts

 

"Sleep is a naturally recurring state characterized by reduced or absent consciousness, relatively suspended sensory activity, and inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles"

8 hours a day is said to be the ideal sleeping time for a human but i wonder, how many people across the globe actually achieve that? In school? maybe, but after that, at college, 8 hours is a luxury.

There was this particular night, i was unable to sleep practically all night, But there were a few things i ended up pondering about, mostly because of a few recent movies i'd seen. And that got me thinking about sleep.

So a little reading later i figured out that REM sleep is by far the best thing in human evolution, thats the stage in which we dream, and the reason its that good is because it satisfies youre desires without them ever getting satisfied in real life.

So, My next question, is that good for human evolution? If the person's wishes are granted in his sleep, why does man want to wake up and work, is it because he wants to work or because he wishes to improve on his dream?

Is dreaming simply a means of projecting the ideas of man using senses for better visualization so that it can be improved on later? If that is the case, is dreaming actually a part of conscious thought?

I wonder... perhaps i can dream up an explanation sometime. Brings a whole new meaning to 'I'll sleep on it' .

A Simple world

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."

Confucius

Life sure has gotten a whole lot busier lately, and complicated and that makes me wonder, is it worth it.I wonder whatever happened to the simple pleasures of sitting on the terrace on a beautiful day staring at the clouds making up tales. I know i sound like an old geezer whining but frankly sometimes i think in our pursuit for happiness, we have forgotten what it truly is.

Mania

Heya folks,

Been a while, ain't it? Well, i was travelling , made a quick trip to madras , then went on to tirupati in what turned out to be a very eventful trip.


Location:  Madras
Songs:  The Animal Song - Savage Garden
           Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N Roses
           Earth Song - Michael Jackson      

Spent barely a day here but enjoyed it thoroughly. My parents lived in madras, so took my mother's advice and went to the snake park in the afternoon and took a whole bunch of pictures.

Then, went over to the beach at sunset and ate seafood watching the sun set on the far side of the ocean. The riot of colors that i witnessed that day shall be hard to forget for a while, sadly i couldn't take a pic of it because i ran out of charge on my camera.Well, U can't hope for everything i guess.

For more pictures, open this article and scroll down.

Trip Down Philosophy Lane

Songs:
On the road again - Canned heat
Further up on the road - Eric Clapton



Im on my way to my grandparent's house after a really long time in a car with my relatives and i realize something, Road Trip's are fun! especially when in a car with fast beat songs playing loudly while cruising along an empty scenic highway.
Its not just the relaxation that's impressive, its also the new perspective you gain and the fact that there's finally enough time to think about things which are usually pushed aside in the madness of daily routine

One such thing that i was thinking of today when my relative's were talking about an approaching Hindu festival, Vinayak Chathurthi, faith, and im not talking about religious faith.The artisans

Dark Clouds Of Hope

Songs: Let It Rain -Eric Clapton
          Rainmaker - Iron maiden
       


Its that time of the year again,when clean water is hard to get and stepping into the sun turns into the most arduous task. And at time like this, the sight of dark clouds far from being a sign of doom are the embodiment of joy and hope.

Hope that it will rain soon, hope to smell the mud dripping with the elixir of life,the hope to see the

Sleepy combination!

Novel: The Human Factor
Author: Graham Greene
Songs:  Knocking On Heaven's Door - Guns N' Roses
           Your Decision - Alice in Chains
            Only hope - Switchfoot



I don't know if its just me, but the above combination does not go very well with cloudy skies!
I've barely finished the first 3 chapters of the book and heard these songs among a few others and i'm sleepy!
Make no mistake, the songs are really good slow rock songs. The book is a decent read but starts slow, its the combination that's so soothing, so sleepy.

So anyway, i'm off to catch a nap at midday! cya folks soon!

Imagination drawn!

Comics-"the arrangement of pictures or images and words to narrate a story or dramatize an idea."

Comics have been a means of expression since man started drawing.

In this post, ill mainly be talking about japanese comics (manga), their animated versions aka anime,comic books and comic strips.

People claim that comics are for kids.This, i think, is fundamentally wrong.

A lot of the anime on tv is meant for a young audience.But not all the anime is aired on tv.
Anime usually contains a lot of shounen. This should not be considered a deciding factor because the themes the anime deals with vary widely.

The shows on tv deal with themes which are meant for children to learn from like friendship and loyalty. These are idealistically portrayed and unrealistic but are fun to watch and learn from.The anime that is meant for a more mature audience deals with a lot more than just this, they deal with wars, corruption, murders, Armageddon, pride, arts, love, romance etc

Another thing that is particular to anime, is the humor which is par excellence. The fact that anime are drawn means the expressions are exaggerated to evoke laughter.Morover because they are drawings, everything the writer has in mind can be drawn and represented exactly as the writer intends it making them fun to watch.

Comic strips are mainly aimed at making readers laugh and usually succeed while still getting a point across in 4-16 pictures.

some of the best examples include