My Cultural Diversity Project

CD project from Pradumn Mishra

Poverty in Europe

We have been hearing of recession in European countries followed by the Euro Crisis but I never thought that I would witness it in such a manner.

A little context first, I am on student exchange for a term in Clermont Ferrand, France, and have utilized this opportunity to visit many European countries.

Wherever I have been I have seen beggars around. But they are not like beggars in India. None are dressed in rags (This might be because of the weather here). In fact most are well dressed. Some are very young and even good looking men and women.

I would like to recount these two of the instances which really touched me.In a Spanish train from Port Bou to Barcelona, a guy simply kept a slip on every window which told of his problems and he didn't even verbally ask for anything, just left those slips and collected those afterwards. quietly, without even saying anything.

A group or a single guy or girl playing various musical instruments is another way for the poor here to get some money. I have seen hundreds of such performances. But I was pretty touched by a women at a metro station in Paris. She was playing the Cello or I should say trying very hard. She looked like a 40 something lady, well dressed and one who has refused to say no to hardships of this world. I could not help but imagine that she might even have children to feed.

Since I am on a tight budget here, I coould only give her 20 cents but still she smiled back at me and even gave me advice in her broken English to keep my wallet inside my jacket to save it from pickpockets. I just loved her gesture and could not stop thinking about her for a long time.

My Favourite Quotations

Presenting some of my favourite quotations from some of my favourite authors which I find really relevant in this world,

“One can be in love with several people at the same time, feel the sorrow with each, and not betray any of them.” 

- Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez

“What do you think? I'm not a starfish or a pepper tree. I'm a living, breathing human being. Of course I've been in love.” 

- Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore

“He was still too young to know that the heart's memory eliminates the bad and magnifies the good, and that thanks to this artifice we manage to endure the burden of the past.” 

- Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera

“But when a woman decides to sleep with a man, there is no wall she will not scale, no fortress she will not destroy, no moral consideration she will not ignore at its very root: there is no God worth worrying about.” 

- Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera

“So that's how we live our lives. No matter how deep and fatal the loss, no matter how important the thing that's stolen from us--that's snatched right out of our hands--even if we are left completely changed, with only the outer layer of skin from before, we continue to play out our lives this way, in silence. We draw ever nearer to the end of our allotted span of time, bidding it farewell as it trails off behind. Repeating, often adroitly, the endless deeds of the everyday. Leaving behind a feeling of immeasurable emptiness.” 

- Haruki Murakami, Sputnik Sweetheart

“I discovered that my obsession for having each thing in the right place, each subject at the right time, each word in the right style, was not the well-deserved reward of an ordered mind but just the opposite: a complete system of pretense invented by me to hide the disorder of my nature. I discovered that I am not disciplined out of virtue but as a reaction to my negligence, that I appear generous in order to conceal my meanness, that I pass myself off as prudent because I am evil-minded, that I am conciliatory in order not to succumb to my repressed rage, that I am punctual only to hide how little I care about other people’s time. I learned, in short, that love is not a condition of the spirit but a sign of the zodiac.” 

- Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez, Memories of My Melancholy Whores

“Nobody likes being alone that much. I don't go out of my way to make friends, that's all. It just leads to disappointment. ” 

- Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

The "State" of Tamil Eelam

The Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa recently visited my current sanctuary (Madhya Pradesh) to lay the foundation stone of Sanchi Buddhist and Indic Studies University on the invitation of M.P government.

Ironic , isn't it ?

The same person who has on his hands blood of thousands of Tamils killed during the so-called elimination of LTTE , laying foundation stone of a Buddhist university , the religion based on non-violence and peace. 

And on the top of it, he preaches "I think the message of tolerance and understanding is of great relevance today, as we see the tragic results of enmity and hatred towards other faiths leading to violence and destruction, and great loss to societies." Coming from a mass murderer seems more like Hypocrisy though. 

Not only responsible for killing of about 80,000-100,000 tamils ,gravely injuring thousands of Tamils in the shelling on civil areas (As per a UN Team which visited the affected areas, one can even find Tamil children having shrapnel wounds), now even when the so called War is over, Rajapaksa has kept lakhs of tamils in detention camps away from their homes under the guise of  "welfare villages" , citing the reason that army is clearing the areas for mines. A ploy to deliberately settle Sinhalese in Tamil dominated areas.

Meanwhile,a UN panel has found “credible allegations” of war crimes committed during the final months of Sri Lanka’s civil war. On the basis of which, if proven, those most responsible, including Sri Lanka Army commanders and senior government officials, as well as military and civilian LTTE leaders, would bear criminal liability for international crimes.

Agreed that the LTTE was not exactly a peaceful organization but the cause which they supported was not at all wrong. For years, Tamils in Singhalese dominated Sri Lanka have faced rampant discrimation and for decades have been treated as second grade citizens.That racism has a long history of social ostracism, economic blockades, pogroms and torture.The Sinhala only act has assured that there are no tamil government officials. Civil Services in Sri Lanka are almost entirely Sinhalese.

And what has India done ? Besides shamelessly providing aid to Sri Lanka's army, lately It has voted against Sri Lanka in the US-sponsored resolution at the UNHRC on alleged war crimes. Seems just Lip service to me. Though the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi created an environment against LTTE in India but now with LTTE almost gone, it is India's duty to come to the aid of poor Tamils in Sri Lanka who have only suffered humiliation for decades in the hands of majority Sinhalese.

It is high time that India along with the western powers and UN put pressure on Sri Lanka for an Independent Tamil Eelam which is a very valid demand after all. The humiliation of millions of Tamils can only be ended this way. 

When East Timor and South Sudan can be found then why not an independent Eelam ?

Reinvent or Perish!

It is not wrong to say that we live in the age of Reinvention;constant and continuous reinvention.The biggest reinvention that keeps on happening around us is the reinvention of human beings by themselves.The concept is pretty much simple: If you can't reinvent yourself,somebody else will and then you will be left redundant or worse you will be left behind, alone!
Just like what might have happened with Giraffes who could not lengthen their necks or to Neanderthals.The theory of Natural selection simple reinforces the same fact: Reinvent or Perish. Nobody is going to wait for you,not even your beloved "Mother Nature".
The history of reinvention in mankind is so old that according to some people it even precedes the history of Inventions.They believe that inventions only happened because of the basic human urge or trait or requirement to reinvent.According to them, all human development is a direct consequence of this reinvention and it is because of this trait,that we are the dominant species on this planet.I can't agree more with these people, whosoever they are.
Yet coming to today's world,I believe it has become much more important to be ready to reinvent yourself at every turn just to stay relevant.And, reinvention is needed in all spheres of your life, be it your social, professional or family life.You just cannot take the risk of losing the touch with "today" by choosing to stay as you are forever.If you do so,then you better go to the caves of Himalayas or burn in the hell we call "World" until you die and you are delivered to some other hell,maybe.
And this reinvention story is not just limited to us humans.Think about multinational corporations which went bankrupt or had to shut down as they had lost touch with reality because of their inability to reinvent.Do you think you would have known that there is a company called "Motorola"  if it had not stopped Pager production ? Or why did Kodak went Bankrupt while Canon or Xerox did not ? Why is Nokia currently in the red while Samsung Mobile is not ? Even nation states do the same. Why is Russia no longer a communist country ? What can explain the presence of billionaires in China ?

The plain answer is: Because they reinvented themselves.

Do I know you ?

“Is it possible, in the final analysis, for one human being to achieve perfect understanding of another?

We can invest enormous time and energy in serious efforts to know another person, but in the end, how close can we come to that person's essence? We convince ourselves that we know the other person well, but do we really know anything important about anyone?”

― Haruki Murakami, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

Murakami in the above mentioned lines has easily broken the deceptive notions that we generally develop about knowing people.Basically, what it means is that all you people who are living 'happily' under the impression that "I know my Husband/wife/girlfriend/boyfriend/friend/son/daughter etc. well", kindly come to your senses.Moreover, don't even think that investing more time and energy in the person will yield you some better results.

Because no matter what one does it is impossible to reach the depths of human mind and all the more impossible when most of the times even the possessor of the brain is unaware of the depths himself/herself.A classic example of the Johari window concept.

And even if ,somehow, one gets to know someone well enough, still the question remains for how long will the information remain relevant ? Aren't we all changing all the time.Even our body cells are not the same ones over the time then how can our feelings or thoughts can remain the same as these alter even more frequently depending upon internal/external stimuli etc. .

For example, if it had not been so, couples who have had love marriages would not get separated years after their marriages.After all, their marriage is based on the simple understanding that they have deciphered each other and hence "know" their partners thoroughly.

Thus, I believe the notion of knowing someone "well" is more like a superstition and acts in the same way sweet tonics given to Hypochondriac patients work: Satisfy their anxiety and allay their fears.

Anna Karenina

Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" a classic which is a class apart.

Recently completed reading the 817 pages long tome and was left with the feeling why did it end so soon. 

"Anna Karenina" is not just the story of Anna Karenina but the story of all mankind.A tale which showcases different kinds of human beings with their bare souls so that one cannot help but feel intimate with the characters.

Firstly,all those who read this novel can't help sympathising with Anna,an elegant lady,mother of a four year old, married to an emotionless Statesman who cares about nothing but his ambitions.It was not her fault that she falls in love with Vronsky who gave her the love and respect which she so lacked in her mechanical life.

She gives up her everything;her position in society and her son to be with Vronsky but could not deal with the way society treats her as a result.The same people who would have felt honored to meet her before start to avoid her and she becomes an outcast, a fallen woman.

All this takes a toll on her, who not only starts to blame Vronsky for her situation but also becomes extremely possessive of him.Whenever he went out of her sight she would think that He is probably having affairs with other women and is no longer in love with her.Resulting in quarrels with Vronsky only to be ended by repeated assurances from him that he loves her and only her.Yet, she could not contain her jealousy and in the end commits suicide thinking that it will be painful and regretful for Vronsky to live without her.

Secondly,the novel could have been named "Anna Karenina,Konstantin Levin" because half of the novel is about this man,his internal struggles,his doubts,his life and ultimately how he come to terms with these.

Overall,a great novel,one which will make you feel sad when you see that the pages on the right side of bookmark are thinning.

P.S. Any attempt to summarize a novel such as "Anna Karenina" is blasphemous in my opinion as it trivializes not only author's art and style but also renders the soul of the novel meaningless and hence I haven't written the summary here.

Conversations with Abhiraj Arora Part II

Continuing with my "Conversations with Abhiraj Arora " series,here is the second installment of the same.We found this topic very intriguing and thought provoking.

Part II:Being Judgmental

How easily we judge our fellow human beings ?

I used to discuss this a lot with Abhiraj as we used to encounter every now and then someone judging someone else and in fact ourselves judging others though the realization that we are "Being Judgmental" used to tame down this common tendency of human beings at least to some extent in us.

Among all the things we do on a regular basis,judging others is something which we do most offhandedly.And it is something which we all do continuously, knowingly or unknowingly.We judge all the time.We judge everyone and everything.And most of all we judge hurriedly based on our preconceived notions because frankly we do not have time for judging something/someone at a proper scale.

The basic reasoning that goes against this judgmental behavior is that nobody has made us the Judge.Nobody gave us the position or the right to judge others.Precisely because we are not capable of judging others.Not only because we lack all the knowledge of the subject in hand but also because our Judgment is superfluous.Neither we ourselves nor anybody else needs it.

For example, we judge a new non-performing team member as Dumbass without knowing that the guy has family problems.I have seen many people judge Girls as stupid merely based on the fact that they are girls.The recent Slut walks were also a reaction to this judgmental behavior on the part of many men who have the audacity to think that all girls wearing short dresses are sluts.

Thus, "Being Judgmental" is a weakness which we usually don't admit ,though it exists in most of our minds as prejudices or strong notions,and which doesn't serve any purpose other than hindering a better understanding of the people,events or things around us.

The Principle of Karma

Recently read on 9GAG  "Karma is a bitch,only if you are."

That got me thinking what exactly is the principle of Karma and do the principle of Karma I believe in is the Ideal one ?

As per Hinduism, all your deeds whether good or bad i.e. positive and negative Karma, are continuously recorded by some heavenly beings and at the end when a Hindu dies, He is judged on the basis of his actions during his lifetime and accordingly sent to heaven or hell.Plus,his next life is also determined by the same actions of his last life.So,if you are a Hindu and you are leading a pretty comfortable life(comparatively speaking),then you must have done some very good deeds in your earlier life and had accumulated lots of positive Karma.The moral of the story being,one should try to maximize his/her positive karma so as to escape from hell and get a good life in the next birth.

The concept of Karma as per Abrahamanic religions(Christianity,Judaism and Islam) is a little better one in my humble opinion.As per their religious doctrines, at the day of Armageddon, all dead will rise and will be judged by God again on the basis of their actions during the lifetime.Thus,if you have accumulated positive Karma during your life,you will be sent to heaven and if you have accumulated negative Karma,then  you will be sent to hell.Why do I find this concept a little better than the Hindu one ? I will explain by an example.

Imagine if you are Jew who was gassed by Hitler during second world war at some concentration camp.Now later on Hitler also dies.But on the day of Armageddon,both you and Hitler will be judged in front of God together.It seems fair as per the human sense of justice.

Still,the true principle of Karma and the one I believe in is slightly different from both of these.It simply states that If you do good deeds then good things will happen to you and If you do bad deeds ,you will be the object of bad deeds from some other spheres.Thus,If you accumulate positive Karma then you will attract positive energy to you and If you accumulate negative Karma then you will attract negative energy.And all this not in some other life,not after death and not on the day of Armageddon but within this life.

But there will be many questions on this too.After all every theory has some non-believers.People can say that they have seen Murderers,Rapists,Frauds etc, flourishing while their victims cry.To all those people, I would just like to say that give time some time, What goes around surely comes around !!

Memories or Myths !!

"He was still too young to know that the heart's memory eliminates the bad and magnifies the good, and that thanks to this artifice we manage to endure the burden of the past. But when he stood at the railing of the ship... only then did he understand to what extent he had been an easy victim to the charitable deceptions of nostalgia" - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

The above-mentioned quote by Gabo fully summarizes the fact  that our brain plays a deceptive game on us so that people,places or things left in the past are fondly remembered by us omitting the painful associations.

For example, now when I am in Lakhimpur, there are only reminiscences i.e. enjoyable recollection of Mumbai and related events.Not that I didn't have pleasant experiences in Bombay.I had my share of both pleasant as well as not-so-good experiences in Mumbai ,like anybody would have,If they stay in any city for a year.But still, why does my mind project my Mumbai experience as a wonderful one now that I have left it ?

Specifically about cities, I have always seen in people that the impression people make of cities is always based on the kind of people they meet when they visit a new city(not for tourism purpose but for wok or something). There was one guy whom I knew and  who had visited Lucknow.On his maiden visit he  met some unhelpful people(read thugs) there and  would always on the mention of Lucknow would start his tirade about how pathetic the city of Lucknow is, without realizing that his whole criticism is based on the assumption that there is nothing else to the city apart from some specific not-so-good people whom he had the misfortune to interact while being there.

There was one Malayali guy working with me in SEBI who once said to me that he thinks people from UP are generally dirty.Such a narrow point of view only based upon on the fact that he had visited Kanpur ten years ago and met some people whom he found unclean/unhygienic/dirty !!!

Based on these examples one would think that I am contradicting my own point.That First impressions are the lasting impressions.

But the case here is different.It is not about some single visit impressions of a city. But what I am talking about is a comprehensive set of memories the kind of which involve your emotions and associations which are slowly developed with the passage of time so that your brain can choose the set of deceptive memories magnifying the good ones and eliminating the bad so that ultimately we end up being nostalgic.

Then why does our brain work this way ? Why can't it plainly present the facts ?

Though I am not a psychologist/psychiatrist(I am not sure to which branch does this question fit in) , but from my experiences and from talking to people,I have come to a conclusion that it is one of the many defensive mechanisms that our brain adopts to soften the picture of the past so that now when we are  trying to scrape through life which at any moment is not that easy, we can find some respite thinking of the "green pastures" (of course an illusion) where we had roamed in the past.

The same reason why people think fondly of their exes forgetting the downs and pinning only on the ups of their relationship.

Conversations with Abhiraj Arora

Since now I have ample of time (which I am wasting away in the greens of Lakhimpur),so I decided to share  a few gems of conversations which I had with Abhiraj for the help of "Future Generations".
 
Part I - Familiarity breeds contempt

The first time I mentioned this idiom to Abhiraj, he started with  his usual act of Mocking all things which I say,in any context whatsoever.

I remember , we were in some crowded place, a mall or something, and Abhiraj was like "I can ask n number of people here and I am quite sure nobody knows what it means".And, he even asked many people later in office and thank God there was this one Guy who knew this phrase.

Anyhow,sanity prevailed and as we discussed "Familiarity breeds contempt" at length  we found the concept to be so true especially while examining our very own lives.

For my part,I had seen some similar sort of thing happening during my B.Tech. days.In College, during first year specially during the first months, a lot many people came together, behaved their best, formed groups but slowly as if a review process works people segregated as they became familiar to each other.

The western concept of a live-in relationship also stems from the same principle wherein two people who think that they want to live together for life(Though that is rarely the case) try to check out their compatibility by living together for a short time.In short,they check will there be a development of contempt from either party as they become familiar to each other.

The basic reason underlying  is I believe is one of mankind's inherent trait - To Fake it.This is what we all learn from our childhood, to be on our best behavior when we meet meet new people.And this is what shadows the actual identity of a person when we meet him/her for the first time or during the initial days of acquaintance.And hence, you might get impressed by someone only to realize later how wrong you were and this deceiving tactic generates loathing or contempt.

Though I must admit that the whole idea is based on the premise that there exists something loathsome or contemptuous in the fellow individual.

Dictionary defines contempt as "The feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.". So, if there is nothing to be scorned off,voila,you are free from the burden of "upcoming contempt" which is waiting around the corner but that is rarely the case.Passionate lovers can though take the help of this argument to hide their psychological and sexual dependency on their lovers and get on but not most of the sane people.