Although, this video should have come earlier, I just thought I should make one now. Here's the link:
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"We owe our exceptional power of thought to the very first stargazers." Who was the first philosopher? To me, the first philosopher was not a man who wondered about the meaning of life, but a man - an early man - who first looked up at the stars. Perhaps somewhere in a remote corner of the world, that prehistoric being had the audacity to ask a very fundamental question - that of man's place in the universe. He wanted to know what those tiny dots of light were, scattered across the night sky, as he looked upon them sitting by the fire, perhaps after finishing a night's meal. The first sensation was not of fear, but of curiosity. I think that very first realization of a world beyond our own made us ponder upon life. It took another 10000 years or so for us to truly grasp the cosmic reality, but that first man, who experienced the most primitive sense of the idea of a universe was the one who truly made a giant leap. I think we owe our exceptional power of thought to the very first stargazers. Looking beyond the terrestrial made us reflect upon ourselves. Modern science has made tremendous progress in a few hundred years. Our quest for an understanding of the universe and life itself has revealed an immense complexity encompassing reality as we experience it. This disillusionment has challenged our ancient belief systems and compelled us to reconsider our faith and our philosophy. Any scientific progress, however, is impossible without conflicts. Though we all tend to take scientific research for granted, believing it to be purely empirical, for any great revolution in science you need a very consistent contradiction of faith and this we learn from the 19th C. German philosopher Friedrich Hegel. ‘Dialectics’ Hegel insisted that knowledge is a very dynamic process. Philosophers like Socrates believed firmly in arguments. Any true knowledge is an outcome of oppositions. Hegel’s dialectical method emphasized on three aspects of logic- thesis, antithesis, and synthesis.
The non-objective nature of science Hegel believed that science in itself can’t be an absolute objective truth. The truth can only be arrived at through consistent subjective narratives, which often clash. Any object in itself cannot have a defined symmetry unless there is an observation made. Therefore, unless there is a counter-narrative for an original proposition of the object, there can’t be an evolution of knowledge about the object. This complicated machinery of thought is what Hegel assumed to be at the root of any scientific or epistemological progress. Modern science has only helped to strengthen his argument. Quantum theory has deconstructed reality to an array of probabilities. This fundamental uncertainty has implications in all branches of scientific knowledge, even in biology. Therefore, to truly grasp the essence of any scientific truth there is a very basic need for a healthy criticism of any empirical proposition. For every thesis, we need an antithesis. To every narrative, there has to be a counter-narrative. The road to science is not a straight one. It is filled with contradiction and paradoxes. It must be. Truth never comes in packages, it is always scattered. The attempt of any scientific or philosophical search has to be a reconciliation of these ‘half-truths’. "There is no royal road to science, and only those who do not dread the fatiguing climb of its steep paths have a chance of gaining its luminous summits." ~Karl Marx “साधो, देखो जग बौराना । साँची कही तो मारन धावै, झूठे जग पतियाना ।“ (O saint! See the world going mad. If you say the truth, they are prepared to kill you, liars become heroes here.) Who was Kabir? A mystic? A Sufi? An enlightened being? Kabir said - The self forgets itself, as a lion jumps into the pond seeing its own reflection. More important perhaps is his story. A man born into a Muslim family accepts a Hindu guru and later discovers a path that is independent of both the sects or any sect whatsoever. At a time when secular ideologies are being threatened and a politics of color is gripping the country, the verses of Kabir and his life itself has to become a message for all of us. The west discovered him at a time when Rumi and Shams were being immigrated from Persia with their message of cosmic love. For us, however, Kabir has gradually turned into a distant voice, cocooned into the image of an enigmatic teacher, and often a holy ‘messenger’ – the very idea that he repelled. “The river that flows in you also flows in me. We are one and the same.” Kabir’s philosophy is that of an existentialist who believes in the sanctity of this life, this existence. “If you don't break your ropes while you're alive, do you think ghosts will do it after?” Kabir resonates with us. In a world shattering itself into pieces – religions, sects, ideologies, Kabir reunites us with the inner self. The self that is accountable for things and the self that has the power to change. बुरा जो देखन मैं चला, बुरा न मिलिया कोई। जो मन खोजा अपना, तो मुझसे बुरा न कोई।। (As I searched for the devil, I didn’t find one. As I looked within me, I found that I was the evilest of all.) Kabir asks us to retrospect. To break free of this carnival of dead emotions and hero worship. To seek the truth that is beyond any -ism or divided ideologies. His message is simple – as timeless has his legacy – the message of the inner truth, the self, the wonder of this life. Nothing else matters. “O Slave, liberate yourself. Where are you, and where's your home, find it in your lifetime, man. If you fail to wake up now, you'll be helpless when the end comes. Says Kabir, listen, O wise one, the siege of Death is hard to withstand.” The Indian Ocean is one of India’s most vibrant music bands that has chosen to sustain itself in relative obscurity. In a country where pop music and love songs are dramatically overrated, this group of old school ‘boys’ have created a niche of their own. Their music is a protest in itself - an alternative platform for voicing issues of the left ideologies. It talks about the philosophy and politics of life and we need their kind of music today more than any other time. A tribute to their passion. Here’s an extract from their hit song Bandeh from Anurag Kashyap’s Black Friday – Arey mandir ye chup hai, arey masjid ye gumsum Ibadat thak padegi Samay ki laal andhi, kabristan ke raste Arey lathpat chalegi.. (The temple and the mosque, both are silent, Their worships exhausted. The red waves of time shall crush the morgue And the bloody path will be lit...) Dear Mr. Hawking, May you rest in peace-if at all there’s a peace after death. You, for one, would never have believed in it. I remember looking at your broad, smiling face on the cover of A Brief History of Time and wondering how the hell did I a guy like you end up penning a book like that. Your vitality and will was far greater than your science. You taught us not just about Black Holes and Big Bang, but also about the meaning of life. That life is a powerful force that can make miracles happen is what you showed us with your journey on the wheelchair. For a follower of science, you were a true inspiration. Newton and Einstein were remarkable; you, on the other hand, entrusted science with an emotion that was as empowering as it was enlightening. Prolonging your life not just by life support and medicine, but more by a sense of endless curiosity and wonder at existence, you redefined what it means to be alive. You embraced death too with as much excitement, proving again your own point that man is a mere traveler, not planned or special but still very fascinating. We will miss you though. The universe is an emptier place without your mechanical voice. Wherever you are sir, bon voyage! “Thousands of desires, each worth dying for... many of them I have realized...yet I yearn for more...” ~Mirza Ghalib Sudhir Mishra’s Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi is a rare gem of Indian cinema which has achieved a cult status in the so-called ‘Parallel wave’. It’s a story of doubts and failures, and also of love and triumph. The political and socio-economic turbulence of India of the Emergency period is wonderfully depicted in the story of three young college pupils torn apart by an ideological uprising. The film leaves you with a lot to contemplate upon and is worth a study. The era of 1970 was a chaotic time in Indian history. Saddened and frustrated by an authoritarian political system which was fundamentally based on nepotism and hypocrisy, the youth was mobilized by an ideological utopia motivated by the influence of Marxist culture and global political climate. The revolution in Cuba had inspired rebellions all over the world and India was not alien to it. In that atmosphere began the infamous Naxalbari movement which was basking in the dream of a classless society. The more intellectual rather than an armed wave of struggle started under the leadership of Jayaprakash Narayan in Bihar, threatening the very foundation of the so-called one-party establishment. Sinhasan khali karo ki janta aati hai! With this fear came the doom of the Emergency putting the whole nation into shock. In those turbulent times, the very nature of our democratic setup was put to severe scrutiny. How justified are we in idealizing the mother democracy when liberty and equality of its people is gravely endangered? Thus, began an age of cynicism which continues even today. But as it turns out in the plot, the protagonist of the film who led the communist revolt gives in and escapes the country altogether saying however that, the world has changed, but perhaps not in the ways we expected it to. Hazaaron Khwaishein.. is more of an introspection. In times such as the ones depicted in the film, and also in times like we are in, what matters is how far can we persist in our commitments. Radical measures demand radical sacrifices and the fact remains that change is a process which needs time and space. Revolutions too have a cost. Lives are lost, and innocence is crushed. It is for us to justify the price. As the song goes, Baanwra mann dekhne chala ek sapna! कविता घेराव में किसी बौखलाए हुए आदमी का संक्षिप्त एकालाप है Sudama Pandey ‘Dhoomil’ was one of those rare poets who chose to express their concern for the truth they saw around them rather than playing with words of old emotions and romance. His poetry shouted at the establishment, mocking the bourgeoisie that had long claimed an authority over expression and intellect. Like Muktibodh, Dhoomil was a poet of free verse whose grasp of the stark reality of the human condition transcended the rhythm of language. Sansad Se Sadak Tak chronicles his protest against the illusion of democracy in a world which was plagued with corruption and hatred and sadly enough, his words are still as relevant. रक्तपात – कहीं नहीं होगा सिर्फ़, एक पत्ती टूटेगी! एक कन्धा झुक जायेगा! Another revolutionary poet who spoke for the common and oppressed citizen got killed in a massacre. Pash is a name that still echoes from the heart of socialist ideologies but his sacrifice remains obscured in a land which idolizes populism and authority. However, as he wrote years ago, मैं घास हूँ मैं आपके हर किए-धरे पर उग आऊँगा The poetry of Muktibodh, Dhoomil, and Pash, and perhaps a few more still unnoticed, ask us to stop over and introspect. To see that the world is a beautiful place disfigured, however, by our own selfish propaganda and politics. At a time when Indian democracy is at crossroads, when right-wing extremism is threatening our secular heritage and when the poor man still dies on the streets of our metropolis, it’s fitting to ask again, Partner, tumhari politics kya hai? The story of human sexuality is a story of the transformation of ideas and philosophy. In a society which was dominated by imperialism and fascist political class, we revolted for a new kind of freedom. The kind of freedom that gave the right to pleasure for an individual and the right to express his or her sexual orientation in an open-minded culture. Rajit Roy
The beginning of the Hippie movement in the 1960s led to a revolution of thought and behavior in American youth. Hedonistic lifestyle became a prominent symbol of dissent against the traditional bourgeoisie and the idea of ‘free love’ defined a countercultural perspective that was based on tolerance and common human feeling. With this came a new age philosophy which promoted sexual liberation of the individual. Increased acceptance of premarital sex, skepticism towards traditional moral values about relationships and most importantly, a diversion from staunch heterosexuality made waves across the west which was still emerging from the trauma of the World War and looking for ways to escape the pain of an existential crisis. Sex was fast becoming a symbol of individual freedom and empowerment of the youth. With the rise of feminism, the female sexual choice became a flourishing debate across the modern world. However, amid all this commotion there lay deeply rooted academic scholarship that was trying to understand the psychology and sociology of human sexual behavior. The superstar psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud began an analysis of human sex in terms of day-to-day behavior and bonding. He went on to define libido as a form of sexual energy that drives human behavior and society at large. The Freudian school laid an unprecedented emphasis on sex in order to explain broader impetus in human nature. Michel Foucault of France wrote The History of Sexuality in which he presented a detailed analysis of the evolution of sex as a cultural practice and its impact on society and politics of the age. “We demand that sex speak the truth [...] and we demand that it tell us our truth, or rather, the deeply buried truth of that truth about ourselves which we think we possess in our immediate consciousness.” This kind of thoughtful attitude towards sexuality broke the taboo that existed around it despite the ancient texts in the Oriental countries that celebrated the idea of man’s animal propensity, Kamasutra being the quintessential one. With this drastic transformation of ideologies, there came an increased acceptance or rather idealization of open representation of sex in culture and art. Pornography became a mainstream industry with revolutionaries like Hugh Hefner making it a household phenomenon in progressive cultures. Prostitution, though it remained largely obscured as it ever was, became a symbol of sexual independence in a society that was becoming more tolerant towards open relationships contrary to marriages. Today we are part of a new kind of sexual revolution where homosexuality and LGBT communities are no longer prone to judgments and insecurity, however, there’s still a long way to go. The story of human sexuality is a story of the transformation of ideas and philosophy. In a society which was dominated by imperialism and fascist political class, we revolted for a new kind of freedom. The kind of freedom that gave the right to pleasure for an individual and the right to express his or her sexual orientation in an open-minded culture. However, with this freedom, we are bound by a responsibility that transcends any caste or sex. A responsibility to hold on to basic human principles of decency and moral awareness. There are still miles to go when we reach that point of spiritual excellence where sex can liberate the human soul. Piyush Mishra is a true genius and "Gulaal" is one masterpiece of his literary ingenuity. A re-imagining of Sahir Ludhianvi's dystopian yet powerful poem, O Ri Duniya, which encompasses the whole concept of this film, is a song which reminds us of our descent into a corrupt and bloodthirsty world. It's surprisingly thoughtful and philosophical for a song from mainstream Bollywood and makes our hearts wrench with a kind of disillusionment that defines almost all of Anurag Kashyap's cinematic efforts. Read it, listen to it, think about it for a moment, and if you can, do watch the movie. O world, O dear world, O world of cups of kohl-lined eyes (from which one can drink), O world of rainbow-colored colors and Gulaals.. It's a world of flowers decorating sleepy beds, it's a world of lazy-stretching pigeon.. it's a world of truth sleeping (calmly) by its side, and a world of a temperament going mad.. it's a world of needs wrapped with wishes, it's a world of humans' dreams and their intentions.. World, o world, what's there (to celebrate) even if one gets this world.. what's there even if one gets this world.. what's there.. (there is nothing in this world that is worth).. The world of stories of (mothers') shredded love, The world of sisters' sobbing youth, A world of the relation of Adam and Eve, World of uninspiring words of poets.. The world of Ghalib and Momin's dreams, the world of those revolutons of poets like Majaz (Lakhnawi), World of Faiz (Ahmed Faiz), Firaaq (Gorakhpuri), Sahir (Ludhiyanvi), Makhdoom (Mohiuddin), Mir (Taqi Mir), (Mohd Ibrahim) Zauq, and Daagh (Dehlvi).. Within moments, things move on, within moments, nights go (as in, everything goes in a matter of moments) the one who remains, looks for the morning, looks for a place to live in the burning house.. Save this world, whatever is remaining in here, as it is, Think of it as your own, and pick it up (in your arms, to protect it), (else) it'll start burning in small-unimportant things, save this world, it'll be cut-bruised-beaten and will be living in nights (dark times), save this world.. O world, dear world, They say that the world is not this much (only), there are more world beyond the stars, It's not just us, there is Someone Else too everything about us is decided there only, (and) we don't have an objection to that anywhere, They're knowledgeable, virtuous, would be correct too, But this philosophy goes bad, when they say- The Intelligent says there is Eeshwar, The Virtuous says there is Allah, The Perfect one says there is Jesus, Then the destination says to the man, that- this world is yours, you only take care of it! This world of a few old, dying lamps, world of your dark intentions... (Translation by bollywoodmeaning.com) |
About Me
Rajit Roy
An existential romantic, an agnostic and a prospective biologist. Archives
September 2018
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