Today we celebrate the Festival of Lights where the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within every human being.
Diwali or Deepavali has many legends associated with it. In North India, it is associated with the story in Ramayana where people of Ayodhya welcomed Rama (after a 14-year exile) by lighting rows (avali) of lamps (deepa). In South India, it is celebrated as the day Lord Krishna defeated Narakasura.
Founder of Jainism, Mahaveer is said to have attained Nirvana on this very day. Additionally as the day, chief disciple of Mahaveer, Gautam Swami attained complete knowledge, makes Diwali an important Jain festival. Sikhs celebrate Diwali as the day of the release from prison of their sixth Guru, Hargobind along with 52 other princes with him, from detention in the Gwalior Fort in 1619.
For the Hindus, the festival marks the triumph of good over evil and the homecoming of goodwill and faith. For the Jains it is a celebration of complete knowledge. For the Sikhs, it is a struggle for freedom. And it is a confluence of all these reasons that will add meaning and purpose to our lives.
Hence when we seek to banish the darkness, it is not enough to light lamps only during the Festival of Lights. We must join the fight of the “right” against “might”. We have to connect with our faith in human values of equality, justice and peace for all. We need to connect to knowledge and a better understanding with what’s happening around us. And of course, let’s embark on the struggle for freedom from darkness, both, within and without.
To BE BETTER at banishing the bleak shade…
Stop cursing, and light the lamp within instead!
- Pravin-da
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
SIEGE
Way back in 1990, thousands of Goan students came down to Panaji to join the rally called by the Architecture students who had been protesting peacefully for 18 days. Since the Government was not responding to their valid demands, as a last resort, the students laid siege to the entry points of the city thus crippling all traffic.
As the leader of that agitation, I was called upon to sort a commotion at one corner. A local salt-farmer was vociferously objecting to the obstruction of his cart. Since our intention was only to create a nuisance for the Government, and not the people, fresh instructions were given that all pedestrians and vehicles of farmers, fishermen, elderly and ailing persons were to be allowed passage.
By afternoon, our siege brought us success. The Government succumbed to our demands. The next day’s newspapers carried headlines of our success. But one vernacular daily carried a small news item about an ailing woman‘s being denied passage by our siege. They had to take a long winded route to get to the hospital and the woman had died enroute.
My smile disappeared. I felt responsible for her death for I had planned everything about the siege but I had not planned for ensuring that those who were not responsible for our problems should not be adversely affected. I told my friend, Sunil that I wanted to go and apologise to her family. Sunil cautioned me against doing so as I could get beaten up by the angry family members. However, I decided to go and Sunil insisted on coming along and sharing the consequences of my mistake.
When we reached the house, there was a huge crowd there that had just returned after the cremation. I pushed my way through it till I reached the dead woman’s husband and introduced myself as the person who had organised the siege that was responsible for the delay in his wife getting access to life saving medical treatment. I stood there ready to be slapped but the man said, “Don’t be too harsh on yourself… it was destined to be so…” I broke into tears as he hugged me.
“Protesting is fine, son, as long as it does not punish the innocent”, his words guide me in every cause that I associate with. Every time we have to lay siege as a tool of protest, we must ensure that we are not forcibly obstructing the lives and livelihoods of our fellow citizens.
To BE BETTER at protesting with a siege for a cause…
We must save the innocent from a painful pause!
- Pravin-da
As the leader of that agitation, I was called upon to sort a commotion at one corner. A local salt-farmer was vociferously objecting to the obstruction of his cart. Since our intention was only to create a nuisance for the Government, and not the people, fresh instructions were given that all pedestrians and vehicles of farmers, fishermen, elderly and ailing persons were to be allowed passage.
By afternoon, our siege brought us success. The Government succumbed to our demands. The next day’s newspapers carried headlines of our success. But one vernacular daily carried a small news item about an ailing woman‘s being denied passage by our siege. They had to take a long winded route to get to the hospital and the woman had died enroute.
My smile disappeared. I felt responsible for her death for I had planned everything about the siege but I had not planned for ensuring that those who were not responsible for our problems should not be adversely affected. I told my friend, Sunil that I wanted to go and apologise to her family. Sunil cautioned me against doing so as I could get beaten up by the angry family members. However, I decided to go and Sunil insisted on coming along and sharing the consequences of my mistake.
When we reached the house, there was a huge crowd there that had just returned after the cremation. I pushed my way through it till I reached the dead woman’s husband and introduced myself as the person who had organised the siege that was responsible for the delay in his wife getting access to life saving medical treatment. I stood there ready to be slapped but the man said, “Don’t be too harsh on yourself… it was destined to be so…” I broke into tears as he hugged me.
“Protesting is fine, son, as long as it does not punish the innocent”, his words guide me in every cause that I associate with. Every time we have to lay siege as a tool of protest, we must ensure that we are not forcibly obstructing the lives and livelihoods of our fellow citizens.
To BE BETTER at protesting with a siege for a cause…
We must save the innocent from a painful pause!
- Pravin-da
Monday, October 13, 2008
Space Pen
My friend, Sunil Sardessai brought me a very special gift from London: a replica of the writing instrument used by Soviet cosmonauts on early manned space flights. He had heard of the writing instrument from me. And I had read about it in some version of Modern Myths. The story went thus:
When NASA first started sending astronauts into outer space, they stumbled upon a major problem: they realized that the ball-point pen would not work at zero gravity. But the determined Americans were made of stern stuff. The search for the alternative began in full earnest.
A million dollar investment and two years of tests and toil by the best of their brains, the Americans developed a very special space pen that could write at zero gravity, work upside down, on almost any surface and at temperatures ranging from freezing to high extremes.
The modern myth further mentioned that when confronted with the same problem, the Russians used a pencil!
So often we waste our time, money and energy on searching for alternatives when the answer may be staring us in our face. Quite often, the way out is exactly the one we are standing on. Advancement is all about being able to notice the solutions that lie in our grasp instead of ignoring the obvious and pursuing stranger substitutes.
To BE BETTER at finding a remedy for any ailment under the sun…
Just look around and you are likely to find an already available one!
- Pravin-da
When NASA first started sending astronauts into outer space, they stumbled upon a major problem: they realized that the ball-point pen would not work at zero gravity. But the determined Americans were made of stern stuff. The search for the alternative began in full earnest.
A million dollar investment and two years of tests and toil by the best of their brains, the Americans developed a very special space pen that could write at zero gravity, work upside down, on almost any surface and at temperatures ranging from freezing to high extremes.
The modern myth further mentioned that when confronted with the same problem, the Russians used a pencil!
So often we waste our time, money and energy on searching for alternatives when the answer may be staring us in our face. Quite often, the way out is exactly the one we are standing on. Advancement is all about being able to notice the solutions that lie in our grasp instead of ignoring the obvious and pursuing stranger substitutes.
To BE BETTER at finding a remedy for any ailment under the sun…
Just look around and you are likely to find an already available one!
- Pravin-da
Monday, October 6, 2008
EMPATHY
Incidents that celebrate the spirit of humanism often escape our scrutiny. On 2 October, the local newspapers highlighted the exemplary empathy shown by the Muslim community of Jodhpur in response to the tragedy where many died in a stampede at a temple on 30 Sept. Besides, ferrying the injured to the hospital in their auto rickshaws and taxis, entirely on a voluntary basis, the Muslims queued up for blood donations and "offered water to those coming from cremation grounds after performing the last rites of their loved ones."
Jodhpur's Muslim community chose to scale down Eid celebrations. The move was in response to the human tragedy that affected their city brethren. While, such empathy may be a natural response, we cannot ignore the significant lessons emanating from Jodhpur. It not only challenges the blatant stereotyping of Muslims, but also shows that bonds of love can transcend every wall of hatred.
15 years ago, on the same date: 30 Sept, a deadly earthquake devastated lives and homes in Latur and Osmanabad. Many were engulfed by the emotion of pity for the grief of the affected. Some showed their sympathy by collecting and dispatching money and materials. And there were yet others who chose to scale down Diwali celebrations like they would have if the tragedy to visit one of their own family members.
We easily feel pity for the pain of others. Sometimes we stretch our words and actions to show sympathy. But it is the emotion of empathy that puts us in the other person’s shoes and adds greater meaning and purpose to our reaction. Thus we transform ourselves into responsive and responsible human beings.
In the wake of human pain, it is natural to feel pity and show sympathy…
But to BE BETTER as human beings, let’s embrace the response of empathy…
Regards
Pravin-da
Jodhpur's Muslim community chose to scale down Eid celebrations. The move was in response to the human tragedy that affected their city brethren. While, such empathy may be a natural response, we cannot ignore the significant lessons emanating from Jodhpur. It not only challenges the blatant stereotyping of Muslims, but also shows that bonds of love can transcend every wall of hatred.
15 years ago, on the same date: 30 Sept, a deadly earthquake devastated lives and homes in Latur and Osmanabad. Many were engulfed by the emotion of pity for the grief of the affected. Some showed their sympathy by collecting and dispatching money and materials. And there were yet others who chose to scale down Diwali celebrations like they would have if the tragedy to visit one of their own family members.
We easily feel pity for the pain of others. Sometimes we stretch our words and actions to show sympathy. But it is the emotion of empathy that puts us in the other person’s shoes and adds greater meaning and purpose to our reaction. Thus we transform ourselves into responsive and responsible human beings.
In the wake of human pain, it is natural to feel pity and show sympathy…
But to BE BETTER as human beings, let’s embrace the response of empathy…
Regards
Pravin-da
Monday, September 22, 2008
REMEMBER?
Fiery Orator, Satish Sonak has a habit of reminding his audience that in our increasingly violent world torn by riots, bloodshed and indifference it has become necessary to repeatedly remind ourselves that we are human beings. How better the world would be if we could forget everything else and just remember that we and others are human beings.
Surely the essence of human being is to have reminiscence. It is recollection of the emotions and experiences that connects the past with the present and the concept of self emerges from this glue called memory. If memory is lost the very stuff which makes us human being will be lost.
Yesterday was World Alzheimer’s Day. Today 25 million suffer from memory loss due to Alzheimer’s disease that is invading the young and the old in our world. Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating disease of the nervous system that leads to progressive degeneration of brain cells. Seemingly innocuous lapses of memory, progress gradually into stark decline of mental abilities. Victims show marked changes in behaviour, mood, thinking and intellectual tasks. Memory, judgment and systematic thought processing takes a beating and normal life is badly affected. The progression of the disease differs with patients, though detecting the disease early can be crucial to effective management of the condition. As the disease takes a toll on the mental abilities of the patients, they are completely dependent on their care givers to carry out daily tasks.
When a patient starts showing its symptoms, we become impatient and label him insane, lunatic or mad. Consigning them to a bleak cell or a dangerous street, we forget all about them. Why do we forget to remember? Can we spare a thought for unattended Alzheimer's patients? Can our society remember its responsibilities to the ones who forget?
If to be responsive and responsible, we can remember…
The situation of the Alzheimer’s patients will surely be better
- Pravin-da
Surely the essence of human being is to have reminiscence. It is recollection of the emotions and experiences that connects the past with the present and the concept of self emerges from this glue called memory. If memory is lost the very stuff which makes us human being will be lost.
Yesterday was World Alzheimer’s Day. Today 25 million suffer from memory loss due to Alzheimer’s disease that is invading the young and the old in our world. Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating disease of the nervous system that leads to progressive degeneration of brain cells. Seemingly innocuous lapses of memory, progress gradually into stark decline of mental abilities. Victims show marked changes in behaviour, mood, thinking and intellectual tasks. Memory, judgment and systematic thought processing takes a beating and normal life is badly affected. The progression of the disease differs with patients, though detecting the disease early can be crucial to effective management of the condition. As the disease takes a toll on the mental abilities of the patients, they are completely dependent on their care givers to carry out daily tasks.
When a patient starts showing its symptoms, we become impatient and label him insane, lunatic or mad. Consigning them to a bleak cell or a dangerous street, we forget all about them. Why do we forget to remember? Can we spare a thought for unattended Alzheimer's patients? Can our society remember its responsibilities to the ones who forget?
If to be responsive and responsible, we can remember…
The situation of the Alzheimer’s patients will surely be better
- Pravin-da
Monday, September 8, 2008
REPRISAL
One of our school teachers was real weird. He had a peculiar method of enforcing discipline in his classroom. Every time, a back-bencher would say or do something that would infuriate him, he would shout at the one who committed the mischief and… and strike (with his knuckles) the head of the boy sitting nearest to him.
A similar attitude is reflected in the communal carnages that occur in our country. It has happened in Delhi, Gujarat and so many other brutalities. Now it is happening in Orissa… A Swami and his four followers are killed on 23 August 2008. Immediately, communal goons unleashed horrendous violence against innocents.
The culprits are yet to be identified, but an entire community has borne the brunt of murderous slaughter and inhuman bloodshed. The death count is rising. Over 4000 homes have been razed to the ground and nearly hundred places of worship have been torched. Nuns have been raped, innocent and disabled persons have been lynched, pregnant women, toddlers, orphans and the elderly are being forced to leave their homes and languish in the safety of the jungles!
In the case of our weird teacher’s unfair reprisal, all would find it funny except the one who was unfairly penalised for somebody else’s mistakes and the others sitting in the front row who would be on the edge fearing that the odd predicament would come their way, too. The rest of us were detached because it did not affect us.
It is this detached indifference that provides bizarre logic for the indefensible. How can anyone justify the inhuman killings and brutalisation of innocents? We must ask ourselves whether we have learnt any lessons from the numerous killings, brutal attacks and rapist rioting, born of divisive religious fanaticism… if we do not speak up now against the communal fanatics, we will strengthen their hands… and we will be in their murderous reach someday.
Let’s BE BETTER at the values of empathy, justice and compassion
By ensuring that we connect to the solidarity of responsive action…
- Pravin-da
A similar attitude is reflected in the communal carnages that occur in our country. It has happened in Delhi, Gujarat and so many other brutalities. Now it is happening in Orissa… A Swami and his four followers are killed on 23 August 2008. Immediately, communal goons unleashed horrendous violence against innocents.
The culprits are yet to be identified, but an entire community has borne the brunt of murderous slaughter and inhuman bloodshed. The death count is rising. Over 4000 homes have been razed to the ground and nearly hundred places of worship have been torched. Nuns have been raped, innocent and disabled persons have been lynched, pregnant women, toddlers, orphans and the elderly are being forced to leave their homes and languish in the safety of the jungles!
In the case of our weird teacher’s unfair reprisal, all would find it funny except the one who was unfairly penalised for somebody else’s mistakes and the others sitting in the front row who would be on the edge fearing that the odd predicament would come their way, too. The rest of us were detached because it did not affect us.
It is this detached indifference that provides bizarre logic for the indefensible. How can anyone justify the inhuman killings and brutalisation of innocents? We must ask ourselves whether we have learnt any lessons from the numerous killings, brutal attacks and rapist rioting, born of divisive religious fanaticism… if we do not speak up now against the communal fanatics, we will strengthen their hands… and we will be in their murderous reach someday.
Let’s BE BETTER at the values of empathy, justice and compassion
By ensuring that we connect to the solidarity of responsive action…
- Pravin-da
Monday, July 14, 2008
DAILY DOSE OF HUMOUR
The cartoon is the first thing that most people choose to read in their daily newspaper. Surely it is one of the most important essentials in forming public opinion –- because a visual generally has a greater impact than a sentence does. Hence cartoonists have a bigger influence on the way readers look at various issues.
While Cartoons make us laugh, they are no laughing matter. They have the power to express as well as provoke thinking. The much loved Goan Cartoonist, Alexyz has been doing just that… provoking his readers to think through his caricatures which are accompanied by creative verse.
Seeing Alexyz’s works it is clear that cartooning is not just about a skill. The eventual cartoon is the tip of the iceberg of larger knowledge of the concerned issue. Alexyz is not a distant observer… rather, he is a wandering traveller who connects to his land, environment and people around!
Most importantly, cartooning requires a proactive, positive attitude. We see all that in Alexyz… an ability to discover hope amidst despair, humour amidst sadness, vision amidst darkness… And it is this quality of cartoonists that we need to connect to be better as citizens who seek to be part of the solution to the problems that surround.
- Pravin-da
While Cartoons make us laugh, they are no laughing matter. They have the power to express as well as provoke thinking. The much loved Goan Cartoonist, Alexyz has been doing just that… provoking his readers to think through his caricatures which are accompanied by creative verse.
Seeing Alexyz’s works it is clear that cartooning is not just about a skill. The eventual cartoon is the tip of the iceberg of larger knowledge of the concerned issue. Alexyz is not a distant observer… rather, he is a wandering traveller who connects to his land, environment and people around!
Most importantly, cartooning requires a proactive, positive attitude. We see all that in Alexyz… an ability to discover hope amidst despair, humour amidst sadness, vision amidst darkness… And it is this quality of cartoonists that we need to connect to be better as citizens who seek to be part of the solution to the problems that surround.
- Pravin-da
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