“Hey did u read ‘The Da Vinci Code?” Perfectly harmless question. Or so I thought. But these seemingly innocent words started such a huge debate that left me wondering what went wrong! This New York Times bestseller by Dan Brown has been creating ripples ever since it the stands in 2003.
The book has rekindled a debate that has been under covers for a long time. Every person who has read has a strong opinion about it- either wondering about the alternative to conventional faith that the book provides, or passionately protecting the conventional view about things. In fact, the books even elicited extreme reactions from as far as Kerala, where a customs investigations sleuth (no less!), undertook a six month long investigation to refute Brown’s contentions (full story in The Week, Sept.19,2004 issue). To quote Mr. Francis Kodankandath, who has given quite a strong case, “I found it appalling that he (Brown) had manipulated a great work like the Last Supper to drive home his contentions. Though one is entitled to have independent views on Christianity, it should not be at the cost of historical objectivity and artistic greatness of a monumental work”.
Fair words sir, but I wonder how you define ‘historical objectivity’. Brown uses facts embedded in historical works like the Mona Lisa, The Last Supper etc., to draw his conclusion. Kodankandath interprets the same facts to reach a different one. So whom do we deem right?
One of the biggest flaws in our understanding is our failure to distinguish between facts and myths. And history, as we know it, is a fine balancing act between the two, so much so that it is difficult to say where facts end and myths begin. And this distance between facts and myth, is faith. One’s faith is not just the understanding of the known, but the acceptance, and a trust in the Unknown. Most of us don’t question our beliefs, what our religion preaches. Today if you ask an average Jack on the street why he goes to church or temple or performs any kind of religious ritual, the answer would most probably be ‘I’ve been doing it all my life, and my parents before me’. Religion, for most has become tradition, a legacy that we get from our fathers and forefathers. And when somebody suggests an alternative to this convention, we panic, and the immediate defense is denial.
Probably why the Da Vinci Code is so hard to digest is because it would mean questioning everything that we’ve ever known. But then what we need to ask is that whether the possibility that Jesus was mortal, make his teachings any less poignant or profound or for that matter true? To this a friend replied, “My faith is like a circle. One link breaks, the whole circle breaks.” Agreed that it is so- search for God is the search for meaning, for truth. It begins within you and that’s precisely where it ends too. But why assume your circle is complete? The world is not so small that you can know all that’s there is to know in one lifetime. So many secrets hidden in this creation that it just is humanely impossible to know them all.
The search of god begins with belief and ends in faith. Belief is what u start with, your base. You question it, fight it, and find reasons for it. When you’ve found your reasons, that’s faith. And that, is when life comes full circle. The problem is that most of us don’t seek truth; we just assume we have it. But for those who do seek it, it’s the journey, more than then destination that counts.
Like’s a Rubik’s cube- at first glance, it may seem like a random collection of moments. But when each piece falls in its rightful place, then the pattern emerges…definite and meaningful. And till we find it, faith, god- is a feeling, the inspiration, which in this world of chaos and confusion, keeps us going.
As for what da Vinci meant when he painted those 13 cups, we can guess but we’ll never know for sure. I guess that’s one secret, like many others that died with him- maybe he that was his private joke…his way of mocking at the world. Maybe that’s why, Mona Lisa is smiling.
Sunday, November 27, 2005
lost
that last post was an article i wrote for our coll mag bout a year ago. for some reason i like it more than most of my other ones. maybe coz the topic is kinda close to my heart. ve never believed in religion...or the current versions of it...much to the dissappointment of my parents. but then, thats not the only area where i dissappointed them so..well, lets not talk that.
it's weird right? we re, as a species, such confused entities. our whole happy existance is a bunch of theories. we really are not too sure where we came from...but yes it has to be with a big bang. we as humans dont really believe in a quiet start, do we? n then theory of evolution...blah. but then, they are just that...theories, possibilities, or probabilities. nothing concrete. heck we dont even know if we actaually exist!(wats with quantum physics, n some particle theory, n other big compliacted words that i dont understand)
i find all this pride in the scientific advancement that we re supposed to have made a wee bit pretensious. what have we found really? where are we headed?science is a tricky affair. the more we discover, the more remains hidden. it inspires, it holds us in awe. n it makes us realise, waht a bunch of insignificant dunces we are really.
but its fun being dunces, dont u think. being like this lost kid, in this HUGE magical jungle, where there are no straight roads...only mazes. we'll never know what lies benyond the turning...untill we get there. n thats the beauty of existance. thats what we live.
dunno, was feeling confused. so thought will put it down...now i'm even more lost.
ms. knw it all said: dont fasten ur seatbelts. its more fun if u fall...free fall.
it's weird right? we re, as a species, such confused entities. our whole happy existance is a bunch of theories. we really are not too sure where we came from...but yes it has to be with a big bang. we as humans dont really believe in a quiet start, do we? n then theory of evolution...blah. but then, they are just that...theories, possibilities, or probabilities. nothing concrete. heck we dont even know if we actaually exist!(wats with quantum physics, n some particle theory, n other big compliacted words that i dont understand)
i find all this pride in the scientific advancement that we re supposed to have made a wee bit pretensious. what have we found really? where are we headed?science is a tricky affair. the more we discover, the more remains hidden. it inspires, it holds us in awe. n it makes us realise, waht a bunch of insignificant dunces we are really.
but its fun being dunces, dont u think. being like this lost kid, in this HUGE magical jungle, where there are no straight roads...only mazes. we'll never know what lies benyond the turning...untill we get there. n thats the beauty of existance. thats what we live.
dunno, was feeling confused. so thought will put it down...now i'm even more lost.
ms. knw it all said: dont fasten ur seatbelts. its more fun if u fall...free fall.
Monday, November 21, 2005
the much underrated loo
This was one idea that came up a couple of days ago wen i logged on to post something. well had a lot of thing running thru my head which i wanted to put down in paper(well not paper, watever is the equivalent of that in cyber space). but wen i actually got down to it, nothing really came out. then a A, in one of her brighter momments suggested writing bout how thoughts flow nice n easy in some places, when they jst become a clogged mixture of murky garbage, in others. hmmm...so a asked myself, where is that one place where my messed up mind is Swarosky clear? n before i could even finish my question the answer hit me n i decided to dedicate my next place to that sacred space (!).
so here it is...
so here it is...
ODE TO THE...LOO!!!
Archemedies(wonder if that's really hw the dude spells his name...newayz he's been happy n dead for quite a bit nw so i guess i can effectively rule out the risk of getting sued! ;)) hit upon his most insightful insight wen he was lying, stark naked in his lovely bathtub. he was so overjoyed by this discovery that he had no time to remember more mundane things like cloths n stuff, as he ran through the beautiful streets of ancient Greece(or was it Rome??Lord i NEED to brush uo my history...or is it science??watever...gk man!!!but i do think it was greece), shouting "Eureka!Eureka!"all the while being happily naked! the then citizens of Greece (Rome?) musta thought that watever was it that Sir Archemedies eurekaed, it most definitely was not his cloths. but not to go off track, ever wondered it were possible, that there actually could be a reason for him hitting on the mighty insight wen he was exactly where he was...ie. the bathroom?
now if u're done laughing at the idea, take a minute to think, where u hit on ur brightest ideas?(that's, of course, assuming that, u do hit upon brigt ideas). think think. i'm sure now that smirk on ur face is swalpa fading.
i asked this question to a bunch of my friends. couple of them gave quite vague answers like, 'no place in particular' n 'i dont think'. one soul even went as far as his house down in kerala, among the paddy fields, under some mango tree or some. but most responses were, 'in the shower', 'the bathroom' or 'on top of u-can-guess-what' (for the dunces who didnt get it, it begins with a p n ends with a y, n has one 0 n 2 ts in between).
i, for one, can admit without a mearest trace of doubt that most of my AHA experiences (nw if u dont knw wat an AHA experience is, refer to 'Understanding Psychology', edition 4, chapter 8, page 268), either wen i was in the shower or wen i'm attending one of nature's early morning calls.
so is it all a mear coincidence that all our flash bulb moments happen in the hidden walls of the bathroom or did God actually give us that place to explore n exercise much more that our bowels n our vocal chords(for singing i mean)? maybe the reason lies in the fact that the loo is the only place, in the whole grand world, where u go completely n truely alone.i mean u sure do not want someone staring at u while u go about the merry business of emptying ur system.the showerl...er...well there maybe people who wouldnt mind company, but thats a COMPLETELY diffrent story altogether, so we shalt jst ignore tat tiny hitch for now. so, wat u get it is TOTAL n uninterupted privacy, so that ur toughts can flow daintly as a river. unless u've an irritatin sibling or a roomie whose digestive clock works in perfect tandom with urs, in which case u've loud bangs on the door accompanied by rude n unflattering threats.
n its also the only time wen u're stripped bare of all ur masks that come with the business of living, the only time wen u dont ve to act all proper proper n dignified n grown-uppish. the only time u can be jst YOU.n no one's gonna hold it against u. or judge u.
so is it a big wonder,that u can reason clearly, understand things that u never considered before, wen u re stripped bare (quite literally!) of the layers of pretensions of everyday life?maybe the warmth of a shower, that cleases u off the dirt n muck, clears ur mind too off the clutter, n takes with it all the stress n fatigue down the drain, leaving ur grey cells refreshed.
so next time it feels all confused n muddled up in ur upper storey , just go take that shower!
ms.know it all said: nature's calling!where re u???
cheers!
Saturday, November 05, 2005
God save!
Phew!been long since i posted...yeah like i've been posting everyday otherwise! but still ve been off the virtual world for quite a bit...real one was enough to handle.
jst back after a trip home...as always there's loads to rethink. most people go home to take a break n feel gud n pampered. well, i'm not any different. but then, life always gets the better of me.
for some reason, not yet disclosed, something always happens that will a)mess up my already messed up mind, b) get me brooding, c) all of the above.
this time around we(we being me, my ma, n cha(thats my dad)) went to this temple that apparently opens only once a year.talk bout timing, of the 365 days it had, they HAD to open it wen i was there!ok i've nothing against temples per se, apart from the fact that i dont believe in them, but that's another long story, another post!
so neways, not to get off the topic, ma, being the good zealous temple goer that she is, absolutely insisted that we go...obviously it was extremely fortunate that a temple that opens only once a year, is actually opne nw wen i'm at home for hols, thats some good turn of luck or divine blessing that cannot quite simply be ignored.so we went.
n guess what?it was the last day the place remained open (apparently wen i does open it remains so for some amt of days so that ALL the gud god fearing ppl can catch a darshan), n so there was a huge crowd waiting. ok i said earlier that i do not believe in temples. i believe even less in waiting for looong hours, n letting all n sundry, stamp,kick, push n pull u limb for limb, all for a glimpse of an idol that they believe (n i dont) is god. but then, that is not really the kinda point of view that my ma finds worth encouraging, so there!proceed we did.
n turns out, we didnt really ve to wait in the loong line. nope sir. here things work differently. now my dad happens to the head of office in the place. n his subordinate was with us. now the police guys at the gate recognise him. n those who didnt, his sub jst throws a bit of the IB card round, n we re ushered straight into the temple.n not jst into the temple, but right into the insides...the "nada" or the inner chamber, if u will, were the celebrated idols are piously kept. now there re 3 such doors that u need to pass b4 u get to the real thing. first we were sent to the outter circle...were before us, a gud number of the big wheels had gathered...the local mla or someone(he sure was not hard to miss in white n white, his face looking as though he expected a camera to be pulled out of somewhere any momment, so he was constantly striking a pose), some other sidekicks od his, so major dudes with their thick gold chains, n thinker bracelets gleaming...looks like the richy riches of the place, n of course the temple office bearers, old n withering, some ladies(probably the wifes n sisters of the above mentioned), some wailing kids, n so on. at regular intervels, some of them would walk in to the inside chambers, the others trying to edge in, then walk out, the others still try to edge in. made me quite sick...this power play. more sick to think that i was also among them. the sick greasy smiles, the fake put on show that it was, the display of so called "devotion". 2 miserabel hours later, we were ushered further in...to the next, n then anothe half an hour later, the inner chamber was opened...for the public so see the gods, goddesses rather. n who were the first in line...the chosen few of course, who had the clout. n the once who had none, stood in the lines, pushing n pulling, to wait impatiently for their turn.
made me think...watever happened to "all are equal in front of god" theory?apparently that divine rule is applicable only in the higher divine territory. down here on ug old earth, u still ve the classes set, places fixed. caste system's sure has been abolished, but nw we ve given rise to a whole new set of priviledged class. maybe yesterday's oppressed re today's empowered, but some still re stuck nowhere.
i wondered, if i felt so suffocated during the couple of hours i was in there, how will the gods feel, who ve to put up with this on a regular basis???the smoke, the sounds, the sickening smiles, the pleas of the devoted n the despairing. oh lord! maybe thats wat makes them divine . or maybe thats y they limited it to once a year rather than 24/7.
u know, once one of my best friends, in one of her more sober, i-need-to-think-about-the-higher-purposes-of-life moods wondered, if god was a man or a woman (she went ahead to write some few thousand words advocating both sides i believe). i think god's gender leanings are beyond the point. man or woman. he(or she) has got to ve a damn neat sense of humour! n he...or she, must be really really crazy when he/she made man/woman(i mean i cant really be sure who came first...bible i believed, wasnt exactly faxed from heaven!)
jst back after a trip home...as always there's loads to rethink. most people go home to take a break n feel gud n pampered. well, i'm not any different. but then, life always gets the better of me.
for some reason, not yet disclosed, something always happens that will a)mess up my already messed up mind, b) get me brooding, c) all of the above.
this time around we(we being me, my ma, n cha(thats my dad)) went to this temple that apparently opens only once a year.talk bout timing, of the 365 days it had, they HAD to open it wen i was there!ok i've nothing against temples per se, apart from the fact that i dont believe in them, but that's another long story, another post!
so neways, not to get off the topic, ma, being the good zealous temple goer that she is, absolutely insisted that we go...obviously it was extremely fortunate that a temple that opens only once a year, is actually opne nw wen i'm at home for hols, thats some good turn of luck or divine blessing that cannot quite simply be ignored.so we went.
n guess what?it was the last day the place remained open (apparently wen i does open it remains so for some amt of days so that ALL the gud god fearing ppl can catch a darshan), n so there was a huge crowd waiting. ok i said earlier that i do not believe in temples. i believe even less in waiting for looong hours, n letting all n sundry, stamp,kick, push n pull u limb for limb, all for a glimpse of an idol that they believe (n i dont) is god. but then, that is not really the kinda point of view that my ma finds worth encouraging, so there!proceed we did.
n turns out, we didnt really ve to wait in the loong line. nope sir. here things work differently. now my dad happens to the head of office in the place. n his subordinate was with us. now the police guys at the gate recognise him. n those who didnt, his sub jst throws a bit of the IB card round, n we re ushered straight into the temple.n not jst into the temple, but right into the insides...the "nada" or the inner chamber, if u will, were the celebrated idols are piously kept. now there re 3 such doors that u need to pass b4 u get to the real thing. first we were sent to the outter circle...were before us, a gud number of the big wheels had gathered...the local mla or someone(he sure was not hard to miss in white n white, his face looking as though he expected a camera to be pulled out of somewhere any momment, so he was constantly striking a pose), some other sidekicks od his, so major dudes with their thick gold chains, n thinker bracelets gleaming...looks like the richy riches of the place, n of course the temple office bearers, old n withering, some ladies(probably the wifes n sisters of the above mentioned), some wailing kids, n so on. at regular intervels, some of them would walk in to the inside chambers, the others trying to edge in, then walk out, the others still try to edge in. made me quite sick...this power play. more sick to think that i was also among them. the sick greasy smiles, the fake put on show that it was, the display of so called "devotion". 2 miserabel hours later, we were ushered further in...to the next, n then anothe half an hour later, the inner chamber was opened...for the public so see the gods, goddesses rather. n who were the first in line...the chosen few of course, who had the clout. n the once who had none, stood in the lines, pushing n pulling, to wait impatiently for their turn.
made me think...watever happened to "all are equal in front of god" theory?apparently that divine rule is applicable only in the higher divine territory. down here on ug old earth, u still ve the classes set, places fixed. caste system's sure has been abolished, but nw we ve given rise to a whole new set of priviledged class. maybe yesterday's oppressed re today's empowered, but some still re stuck nowhere.
i wondered, if i felt so suffocated during the couple of hours i was in there, how will the gods feel, who ve to put up with this on a regular basis???the smoke, the sounds, the sickening smiles, the pleas of the devoted n the despairing. oh lord! maybe thats wat makes them divine . or maybe thats y they limited it to once a year rather than 24/7.
u know, once one of my best friends, in one of her more sober, i-need-to-think-about-the-higher-purposes-of-life moods wondered, if god was a man or a woman (she went ahead to write some few thousand words advocating both sides i believe). i think god's gender leanings are beyond the point. man or woman. he(or she) has got to ve a damn neat sense of humour! n he...or she, must be really really crazy when he/she made man/woman(i mean i cant really be sure who came first...bible i believed, wasnt exactly faxed from heaven!)
me???really????
You have a twisted soul. You change your
directions and mind easily. Your beauty is you
over powering feature. But many enemies are
surprised by your beauty and your great power
to control wind
Gem Stone: Amethist, Eye
Color:Grey Blue,Hair Color:Grey that
goes to your shoulder Blades
Quote:And if the cloud bursts, thunder
in your ear
You shout and no one seems to hear.
And if the band you're in starts playing different
tunes
I'll see you on the dark side of the moon.
What Is Your True Hidden Power? .::Beautiful Anime Pics::.
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