TWO ICONS WHICH HOLD THE KEY TO LIFE & WORK

The following has to be read, keeping in mind the chronic economic crisis which has assumed the character of a contagion, haunting Europe. These days the focus is on Cyprus. Even US and China will not be immune to this economic plague. And soon India will also follow suit with misery to ‘innocent’ millions. Anyway the world is in the grip of a general economic slowdown. The problems facing all nations are similar, and now familiar to all of us. In layman’s terms there is sluggishness in demand for the manufactured products coupled with an increase in prices of all essential commodities. Most Governments are not able to solve this problem permanently and they do not know how to handle this, other than make certain knee-jerk reactions.  Against this background, let us consider two icons of India’s culture.

LAND OF SNAKE-CHARMERS & MYSTICISM.

During the Victorian times India had been portrayed as a land of ‘snake-charmers’ & ‘fakirs’. Sir Winston Churchill had called The Father of our Nation as a ‘half-naked fakir.”  This is the impression carried by most Europeans about India & Indians. Even  prominent Indians  were not spared if we consider the epithet used by Churchill. Later for  advertising   our international air-carrier, the icon of the ‘Maharaja’,  was widely used. These were the icons that mostly represented India  abroad, conveying the idea that India is the land of mysticism- carrying the burden of  useless, impractical and out-of-the world ideas.

What non-Indians thought about India , had an impact on Indians regarding their self-image of themselves and their nation. Almost all modern Indians internalized , what  non-Indians , especially Europeans,  ie. our colonial masters thought about India.

REAL  ICONS  REPRESENTING INDIAN CIVILIZ ATION

The two  images, ubiquitous and  familiar to Indians across many generations are that of (1) gods & goddesses with many arms AND (2) Yogi. The former appeared  grotesque in the eyes of Europeans and others  belonging to the monotheistic faiths.  The most familiar yogic picture that one encounters is that of the Buddha. The eyes of most yogic icons are closed or half-open(half-closed). And the yogic posture conveys stillness. (ie nischalatha)

NATARAJA ,THE REFINED ICON AMONGST GOD WITH MANY ARMS !!!!!

The most pleasing icon or image depicting that of a god or goddess with many arms is that of the Nataraja, ie The dancing Shiva.  Anand Coomaraswamy , the late curator of Indian art at the Boston Museum of Fine arts , had expressed the essence of this icon as :- “Nataraja  image, symbolizes  the primal rhythmic energy underlying all phenomenal appearances and activity; here is perpetual  movement, perpetually poised – the rhythm of the spirit . (p.69, The dance of Shiva).

BOTH  ICONS ARE ABOUT ‘BEING’  &   MOVEMENT/ACTION/KARMA

Thus  we have here two images, associated with movement (action), which conveys a multitude of ideas and meanings - about creation of the universe including the life-forms in the same, about the condition of life, about how life has to be lived to transcend the repeated ,endless, tortuous cycles of birth and death.

One image, ie of the dancing God symbolizes extreme movement –action- karma which bring forth the world with all its life ie. All names and forms into being. The gods and goddesses with multi-arms  depicts this extreme creative karma. And the yogic picture of stillness (nischalatha-physically still, mentally still  but mentally alert) teaches or shows the way , how humans who are  caught in this whirl-pool of  creative activity and forced to undergo movement (karma),  can transcend this movement  or action and obtain permanent peace and happiness.  Because movement  starts a process , resulting in  the feeling of ‘I’, the embodied feeling, associated with the feeling of separateness , ie this (action, movement) is the cause of birth and death, the endless’ tortuous life (death) cycles one has to undergo.  The movement in the cause is present also in the effect. Effect here means , human-beings and all other forms.  Indian civilization is the product of this tension  -tension between the Cosmic creative process  and the means of transcending the same. Cosmic creative process involves necessarily action/movement,  which being the products of creation we (all names and forms)  have naturally inherited.  Movement  or action results in fruits of action , (ie further action/movement and its by-products) which is binding in the sense that it  may give us  temporary pleasure  but displeasure and discomfort at some future point of time.

 ‘STILLNESS’ NOT FOR THE  “MAJORITY”

All cannot become Yogis which is the ideal state to be attained by each human being. “For none ever remains inactive  even for a moment; for all are compelled to action by the gunas inherent in Prakriti”. (Gita 3.5). Eventhough  ‘stillness with omniscience’ is the ultimate state one has to strive for in the em-bodied form, this is not possible for many due to a variety of reasons.   Further it is said,   “ Do thou thy allotted task: for action is superior to inaction; with inaction even life’s normal course is not possible.” (Gita 3.8) .Since one is made to move (because movement is there in the intermediate cause, and what is present in the cause will be present in the effect) involuntarily, (as per Gita 3.5) ,it is BEST such motion/karma is channelized to meet the basic requirements of maintaining -the body and that of a  harmonious  society of which one is a member. This is the implication of Gita 3.8.  Therefore our civilization sought that optimal movement , applicable  to each individual  based on his inherited qualities(gunas). Optimal movement is that  movement  between extreme action/movement and perfect stillness. This perfect stillness is impossible for almost all, because the cause of our coming into being itself is movement. (repeat :-the qualities of the cause will be present in the effect).  The optimal movement was sought because, ‘prakriti’ always forces us to do ‘karma’(movement, action) .

WIN-WIN SOLUTION FOR ALL STAKE-HOLDERS

Thus the wise ancients were confronted by the following facts (1) They knew the solution  for permanent and lasting happiness. This meant transcending the creative process of movement. In a way beating the system. One must never be born, generating the feeling of separateness ie. ‘I’ (Aham)  (2)  The creative  movement  forces all created beings  into movement. Majority cannot resist  this forced movement . And movement/action has the tendency to bind. (3) How to channelize this movement, enabling individual’s well-being and also that of society. This channelized movement should be such that, it will not be binding and pave the way for future release. (moksha).  Deliberating  over these ‘truths of being’ our ancients have offered the ideal solution of  ‘varnashrama-dharma’. The ‘varnashrama’ is thus a very ‘scientific’ approach to organizing society and fulfilling its needs based on optimal action (movement) of its members.

A PROVEN PANACEA OFFERED TO THE WORLD

One need not subscribe to the transcendent theory of karma & rebirth, violating one’s religious belief.  But none can ignore the ancient and unbroken continuity of the Indian civilization based on  this philosophy of life. This philosophy signifies sustainability of life and living. This is the panacea that India can offer to the strife ridden post-modern world.

‘HYPER-ACTIVITY’ -  MACHINES  AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE SAME

The  crisis in Europe/US is due to hyper-activity of its members. As per the Indian world-view, we may consider almost all Europeans and US Citizens  to be hyper-active. Hyperactivity is considered by moderns as  a mental and  neuro-behavioral disorder occurring mostly in children. But as per Indian norms, the adults in continental Europe and N.America  are victims of this mental and physical disorder. The Industrial revolution is a consequence of this. For they (machines) have multiplied and made,  the movements (actions) vigorous  and endless. Irrespective of day or night or seasons, man-made machinery keeps on moving/working (karma), and ultimately it is humans moving/acting to the rhythm of the self-perpetuating machinery. Result, machinery controls human movement. This results in binding and more binding without any hope of release and freedom.

UTILIZATION OF  ‘MOTION’ STUDY – BY ‘US’ AND ‘THEM’

 Both Indians and Europeans had studied ‘movement/motion’. One culture studied movement of ‘Grahas’ (planets) to determine how they affect each individual life. This is the science of Jyotisha. The prognosis  this science enabled, advised individuals to restrain their movement and be self-conscious about the same.  The other culture (Western) intensified the study of the movements of mundane objects and formulated the ‘Laws of Motion’. The knowledge from their study they utilized to make machines, capable of infinite and vigorous movement , controlled as well as un-controlled. These machines, as everyone knows have become insatiable of energy and other resources. It has distorted social values and ethics, eg. concentration of resources or wealth and power in the hands of a few. In addition it is endangering the very existence of human beings on this earth due to pollution and fast depletion of  natural resources essential for human living.

ICON  WARNING VIGOROUS MOVEMENT IN HUMAN REALM -RAVANA

The image of the ten-headed Ravana, having twenty arms,  symbolizes this Western Culture afflicted with hyperactivity. Ravana is not God, but only a king. The twenty arms  denoted his  hyperactivity, which sealed his fate. Similarly the hyperactivity of US and Europe  have landed them in trouble. Already two deadly World Wars  had been fought. Numerous other examples may be quoted –the cold-war, wars in Iraq, Afghanistan etc. Their hyper-activity resulted in more and more industrialization, possible by more and more sophisticated machinery. To sustain this production or to keep pace with the ‘movement of the machinery’ they perpetually need more markets and resources.  Not having learnt the lesson,   they propose to cure themselves , by resorting to even more activity. More industry and more production and consumption are the medicines prescribed.  And the effectiveness of the medicine is  measured  by a term  called GDP. GDP thus  a marker of movement.

RITUALS   AN ARTIFICE FOR CHANNELING MOVEMENT

“For none ever remain inactive even for a moment; for all are compelled to action by the gunas inherent in prakriti.” -Srimad Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 verse 5. Understanding  the above ‘scientific’  fact, it was the duty of  rishis, administrators and kings to channel the action of the people. Rishis like Manu, gave the blueprint  for organizing society on the basis of varna and prescribing rituals. The basis of varna is karma based on the gunas.  The so-called meaningless rituals are ‘artifices’ to regulate karma(movement). Kings and administrators  channeled the actions of the public by resorting to yagas (yajnas) , building temples, temple tanks, canals etc. All learned men tried for the optimal movement of each individual in society with minimum rise in entropy, affecting society. In modern times, Gandhiji  exhorted his country-men to resort to spinning on the hand-driven ‘charkha’.  Gandhiji  was NOT a mad-man, but a visionary.

BE HUMAN.

The ancient vis-à-vis modern approach to agriculture, education, travel, health etc and many other actions affecting life, highlights this contrast between stillness (less movement) and vigorous movement. A measure of successful movement is more and more speed. ‘More’ in ‘less’ time. (Thus movement applies both to ‘quantity’  as well as ‘quality’)  Speed may thrill, but it ultimately kills. Another effect of movement (mental as well as physical) is   it makes life short with abrupt end or prolong it with pain. Even  in the divine realm, movement is accompanied by –birth, sustenance & destruction. But here the sustenance period is substantial compared to the life of humans, extending over numerous generations. Wishing all,  a ‘state’ of permanent happiness, our seers warned us not to get caught in the wheels of birth-death, representing movement.

Modern  mundane knowledge seeks to study and amplify movements, which threatens human life on this planet. Creative movement and manipulation of movement is the privilege of the divine realm. Let us humans not imitate it, if the purpose of all that we do is for the well-being of mankind.

                                                            --------------------------------------------