ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ - ೨

ಹಿಂದಿನ ಕಂತಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಹೇಳಿದಂತೆ ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ ಧರ್ಮದ ಸ್ವರೂಪವನ್ನು, ಅದರ ವಿವಿಧ ಆಯಾಮಗಳನ್ನು ತನ್ನ ಕಾವ್ಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲವೆಡೆ ಪ್ರಕಟವಾಗಿ, ಕೆಲವೆಡೆ ಸೂಕ್ಷ್ಮವಾಗಿ ಚಿತ್ರಿಸಿದ್ದಾನೆ. ಧರ್ಮವಿರುದ್ಧವಾಗಿ ನಡೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ಪಾತ್ರಗಳು ಇಲ್ಲವೇ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎನ್ನುವಷ್ಟು ಕಡಮೆ. ಇದು ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಅಸಹಜ ಎಂದೆನ್ನಿಸಿದರೂ ಮನಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ಬಹಳ ಹಿತವನ್ನು ಕೊಡುವಂತಹ ವಿಷಯ.

ಶಕುಂತಲೆಯನ್ನು ದುಷ್ಯಂತ ಮೊದಲ ಬಾರಿ ನೋಡಿದಾಗಲೇ ಅವಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಮೋಹವುಂಟಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಆದರೆ ಅವಳು ಮುನಿಕನ್ಯೆ, ಪರಿಗ್ರಹಕ್ಕೆ ಯೋಗ್ಯಳೋ ಅಲ್ಲವೋ ಎಂದು ಅವನಿಗೆ ಸಂದೇಹವುಂಟಾದರೂ,
'ಅಸಂಶಯಂ ಕ್ಷತ್ರಪರಿಗ್ರಹಕ್ಷಮಾ ಯದಾರ್ಯಮಸ್ಯಾಮ್ ಅಭಿಲಾಷಿ ಮೇ ಮನಃ' (ಈಕೆ ನಿಸ್ಸಂಶಯವಾಗಿ ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯನನ್ನು ಮದುವೆ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಯೋಗ್ಯಳು. ಏಕೆಂದರೆ ಧರ್ಮಪರವಾದ ನನ್ನ ಮನಸ್ಸು ಇವಳಲ್ಲಿ ಆಸಕ್ತವಾಗಿದೆ)
ಎಂದುಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾನೆ. ನಂತರ ಅನಸೂಯೆ-ಪ್ರಿಯಂವದೆಯರನ್ನು ಶಕುಂತಲೆಯ ವೃತ್ತಾಂತದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ವಿಚಾರಿಸಿಯೇ ಮುಂದಿನ ಹೆಜ್ಜೆಯನ್ನಿಡುತ್ತಾನೆ (ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾರಣಗಳು ಎರಡು.
೧. ಹಿಂದಿನ ಕಾಲದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿರಕ್ತರಾದ, ಯೋಗ್ಯಕನ್ಯೆಯರು ಮದುವೆಯಾಗದೆ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವಾದಿನಿಯರಾಗುವ ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯವಿತ್ತು. ಶಕುಂತಲೆ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವಾದಿನಿಯಲ್ಲವೆಂದು ತಿಳಿದುಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು ಒಂದು ಅಂಶ.
೨. ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯರು ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣಕನ್ಯೆಯರನ್ನು ಮದುವೆಯಾದರೆ ಅದು ಪ್ರತಿಲೋಮವಿವಾಹ. ಅವರ ಸಂತಾನ ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯರಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ, ಬದಲಾಗಿ ಸೂತರಾಗುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಶಕುಂತಲೆ ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯನಾದ ಕೌಶಿಕ ಮತ್ತು ಅಪ್ಸರೆಯಾದ ಮೇನಕೆಯಿಂದ ಹುಟ್ಟಿದುದರಿಂದ ಅವಳು ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯನನ್ನು ಮದುವೆಯಾಗಲು ಯೋಗ್ಯಳು).

ಸನಾತನಧರ್ಮದ ಅನೇಕ ಆಯಾಮಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಆಶ್ರಮವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆಯೂ ಒಂದು. ಹೇಗೆ ಮನುಷ್ಯ ಶೈಶವ-ಯೌವನ-ವಾರ್ಧಕ್ಯಗಳನ್ನು ಹೊಂದುತ್ತಾನೆಯೋ ಅಷ್ಟೇ ಸಹಜವಾದ ರೀತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಚರ್ಯ-ಗಾರ್ಹಸ್ಥ್ಯ-ವಾನಪ್ರಸ್ಥ ಎಂಬ ಆಶ್ರಮಗಳು ನಿಯತವಾಗಿವೆ.

ರಘುವಂಶದ ಆರಂಭದಲ್ಲಿ ರಘುವಂಶದವರ ಸದ್ಗುಣಗಳನ್ನು ಬಣ್ಣಿಸುವ ಒಂದು ಕುಲಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಹೀಗೆ ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾನೆ.
ಶೈಶವೇSಭ್ಯಸ್ತವಿದ್ಯಾನಾಂ ಯೌವನೇ ವಿಷಯೈಷಿಣಾಂ |
ವಾರ್ಧಕ್ಯೇ ಮುನಿವೃತ್ತೀನಾಂ ಯೋಗೇನಾಂತೇ ತನುತ್ಯಜಾಮ್ ||
'ಶೈಶವದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿದ್ಯೆಯನ್ನು ಅಭ್ಯಸಿಸಿ, ಯೌವನದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಷಯಗಳನ್ನು ಇಚ್ಛಿಸಿ, ವಾರ್ಧಕ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಮುನಿವೃತ್ತಿಯನ್ನು ಕೈಗೊಂಡು, ಅಂತ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಯೋಗದಿಂದ ಶರೀರವನ್ನು ತ್ಯಜಿಸುವವರ (ವಂಶವನ್ನು ಕುರಿತು ವರ್ಣಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ).

ಮೇಲಿನದು ನಮ್ಮ ಮುಂದಿರುವ ಆದರ್ಶ. ಶೈಶವದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಜನೆ ಮಾಡದಿದ್ದರೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ತಪ್ಪೋ, ಯೌವನದಲ್ಲಿ ಗೃಹಸ್ಥರಾಗದಿರುವುದೂ ಅಷ್ಟೇ ತಪ್ಪು. ಇನ್ನು ವಾನಪ್ರಸ್ಥದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಹೇಳುವುದಾದರೆ ಈಗಿನ ಕಾಲದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಅದೊಂದು ಆವಶ್ಯಕವಾದ, ಮುಖ್ಯವಾದ ಆಶ್ರಮ. ವನಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಹೋಗಿ ವಾಸ ಮಾಡುವುದು ಈಗ ಸಾಧ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲದಿದ್ದರೂ ವಯಸ್ಸಾದಾಗ ಶಾಂತಚಿತ್ತರಾಗಿ ತತ್ತ್ವಜಿಜ್ಞಾಸೆಯನ್ನು ಮೈಗೂಡಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು ಆರೋಗ್ಯದೃಷ್ಟ್ಯಾ ಹಿತಕರ, ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕದೃಷ್ಟ್ಯಾ ಶ್ರೇಯಸ್ಕರ.

ವರತಂತುವಿನ ಶಿಷ್ಯನಾದ ಕೌತ್ಸ ರಘುಮಹಾರಾಜನ ಹತ್ತಿರ ಗುರುದಕ್ಷಿಣೆಯನ್ನು ಬೇಡಲು ಬಂದಾಗ ರಘುವು ಅವನನ್ನು ಕುಶಲ ವಿಚಾರಿಸುವಾಗ ಹೀಗೆ ಕೇಳುತ್ತಾನೆ.
ಅಪಿ ಪ್ರಸನ್ನೇನ ಮಹರ್ಷಿಣಾ ತ್ವಂ ಸಮ್ಯಗ್ವಿನೀಯಾನುಮತೋ ಗೃಹಾಯ |
ಕಾಲೋ ಹ್ಯಯಂ ಸಂಕ್ರಮಿತುಂ ದ್ವಿತೀಯಂ ಸರ್ವೋಪಕಾರಕ್ಷಮಮಾಶ್ರಮಂ ತೇ||
(ನಿನ್ನ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಜನೆಯಿಂದ) ಪ್ರಸನ್ನನಾದ ಮಹರ್ಷಿಯಿಂದ ಮದುವೆಯಾಗಲು ಅನುಮತಿಯನ್ನು ಪಡೆದಿರುವೆ ತಾನೆ? ಎಲ್ಲರ ಉಪಕಾರವನ್ನು ಮಾಡಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಾಗುವ ಎರಡನೆಯ ಆಶ್ರಮವನ್ನು ಕ್ರಮಿಸಲು ಇದೇ ನಿನಗೆ ಸಕಾಲ!

ಮೇಲಿನ ಶ್ಲೋಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಎರಡು ಅಂಶಗಳು ಮನನೀಯ. ಒಂದು - ಗೃಹಸ್ಥಾಶ್ರಮವನ್ನು 'ಸರ್ವೋಪಕಾರಕ್ಷಮ' ಎಂದು ವರ್ಣಿಸಿರುವುದು. ಗೃಹಸ್ಥರು ಕೇವಲ ತಮ್ಮ ಕುಟುಂಬದ ಸೌಖ್ಯವನ್ನು ಗಮನಿಸಿದರೆ ಸಾಲದು. ಬೇರೆಯ ಆಶ್ರಮದವರ ಪಾಲನ ಗೃಹಸ್ಥನ ಮುಖ್ಯಕರ್ತವ್ಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು.
ಹಾಗೆಯೇ, ಇಲ್ಲಿ ತುಂಬ ಮಾರ್ಮಿಕವಾದ ಪದ 'ಸಂಕ್ರಮಿತುಂ'. ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಕ್ರಮಿಸುವುದು ಎಂದು ಈ ಪದದ ಅರ್ಥ. ಇಲ್ಲಿಯ ಧ್ವನಿಯೇನೆಂದರೆ, ಈ ಆಶ್ರಮ ಕೇವಲ ಒಂದು ಮಾರ್ಗ, ಇಲ್ಲಿ ನೆಲೆ ನಿಲ್ಲಲಾಗದು ಎಂದು. ಗೃಹಸ್ಥಾಶ್ರಮವನ್ನು ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಕ್ರಮಿಸಿದರೆ ಅದೇ ವಾನಪ್ರಸ್ಥಕ್ಕೆ ದಾರಿಯಾಗುತ್ತದೆ.

ಹಾಗೆಯೇ, ಶಕುಂತಲೆ ಪತಿಗೃಹಕ್ಕೆ ತೆರಳುವಾಗ ತಂದೆಯನ್ನು ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಹೋಗಲಾಗದೆ ದುಃಖಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾಗ ಕಣ್ವ ಹೇಳುವುದು ಇದು
ಭೂತ್ವಾ ಚಿರಾಯ ಚತುರಂತಮಹೀಸಪತ್ನೀ ದೌಷ್ಯಂತಮಪ್ರತಿರಥಂ ತನಯಂ ನಿವೇಶ್ಯ |
ಭರ್ತ್ರಾ ತದರ್ಪಿತಕುಟುಂಬಭರೇಣ ಸಾರ್ಧಂ ಶಾಂತೇ ಕರಿಷ್ಯಸಿ ಪದಂ ಪುನರಾಶ್ರಮೇSಸ್ಮಿನ್ ||
ಬಹಳಕಾಲ ಭೂಮಿಯ ಸವತಿಯಾಗಿ (ಎಂದರೆ ರಾಜ್ಞಿಯಾಗಿ), ಎದುರಿಲ್ಲದ ದೌಷ್ಯಂತ (ದುಷ್ಯಂತನ ಮಗ)ನಿಗೆ ಕುಟುಂಬದ ಭಾರವನ್ನು ಅರ್ಪಿಸಿ, ಗಂಡನ ಜೊತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮತ್ತೆ ಈ ಶಾಂತವಾದ ಆಶ್ರಮಕ್ಕೇ ಬರುತ್ತೀಯೆ.

ಕೇವಲ ಒಂದೇ ಶ್ಲೋಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಕಣ್ವರು ಶಕುಂತಲೆಗೆ ಅವಳ ಈಗಿನ ಕರ್ತವ್ಯವನ್ನೂ, ಮುಂದಿನ ಕರ್ತವ್ಯವನ್ನೂ ಎಷ್ಟು ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದಾರಲ್ಲವೆ?

ಇನ್ನು ಆಶ್ರಮವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಎರಡು ಮಾತು. ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಚರ್ಯ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಜನೆಗೆ ಮೀಸಲಾದುದು. ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಜನೆಗೆ ತೊಂದರೆಯುಂಟುಮಾಡುವ, ಭೋಗಾಸಕ್ತಿಯನ್ನುಂಟುಮಾಡುವ ಎಲ್ಲ ವಿಷಯಗಳೂ ವಸ್ತುಗಳೂ (ಸುಗಂಧ, ತಾಂಬೂಲ ಇತ್ಯಾದಿ) ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಚಾರಿಗಳಿಗೆ ನಿಷಿದ್ಧ. ಹಾಗೆಯೇ ಗಾರ್ಹಸ್ಥ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಷಯಸುಖಗಳ ಅನುಭವದ ಜೊತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಅತಿಥಿಸತ್ಕಾರ, ನಿತ್ಯಾಗ್ನಿಹೋತ್ರ ಮುಂತಾದ ಕೆಲಸಗಳಿಗೆ ಪ್ರಾಶಸ್ತ್ಯ. ಅನಂತರ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ದೊಡ್ಡವರಾದ ಮೇಲೆ ಸಂಸಾರದ ಭಾರವನ್ನು ಅವರಿಗೊಪ್ಪಿಸಿ ಆತ್ಮಚಿಂತನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಲ ಕಳೆಯುವ ವಾನಪ್ರಸ್ಥಾಶ್ರಮ.

ವರ್ಣಸಂಕರಕ್ಕಿಂತ ಆಶ್ರಮಸಂಕರ ಮನುಷ್ಯನ ಮೇಲೆ ಮತ್ತು ಸಮಾಜದ ಮೇಲೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಪರಿಣಾಮ ಬೀರುತ್ತದೆಯೆಂದು ನನ್ನ ಭಾವನೆ. ಸಂಕರವೆಂದರೆ ಒಂದು ಆಶ್ರಮದವರು ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಆಶ್ರಮದವರ ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆಗಳನ್ನು ತಮ್ಮದಾಗಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು. ಇಂದು ಹೈಸ್ಕೂಲಿನಲ್ಲಿಯೇ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ವಿಚಿತ್ರಪ್ರಲೋಭನೆಗಳಿಗೆ ಒಳಗಾಗಿ, ಅವರ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಜನೆ ಸಮಾಧಾನಕರವಾಗಿ ಇರುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ಚಿಕ್ಕ ವಯಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿಸ್ತು-ಸಂಯಮಗಳನ್ನು ಕಲಿಯದ, ಬೌದ್ಧಿಕವಾಗಿ, ಆರ್ಥಿಕವಾಗಿ, ಮಾನಸಿಕವಾಗಿ ಸಬಲರಾಗುವ ದಾರಿಯನ್ನು ತಿಳಿಯದ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ಬೆಳೆದು ಹೇಗೆ ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ಗೃಹಸ್ಥರಾಗಬಲ್ಲರು? ಹಾಗೆಯೇ, ತೃಪ್ತಿಯಿಲ್ಲದ ಗೃಹಸ್ಥಜೀವನವನ್ನು ಕಳೆದವರಿಗೆ ನೆಮ್ಮದಿಯ ವಾನಪ್ರಸ್ಥಾಶ್ರಮ ಪಲಾಯನದಂತೆಯೇ ಕಾಣುತ್ತದೆಯಲ್ಲವೇ? ತಮ್ಮ ಮೇರುಕೃತಿಯಾದ 'ಮಹಾದರ್ಶನ'ದಲ್ಲಿ ದೇವುಡು ರವರು ಒಂದು ಸುಂದರವಾದ ಮಾತನ್ನು ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ -'ವೈರಾಗ್ಯವೆಂದರೆ ಬೇಡವೆಂದು ನೂಕುವುದಲ್ಲ, ಸಾಕೆಂದು ವಿಮುಖವಾಗುವುದು' ಎಂದು. ವಾರ್ಧಕ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ತೃಪ್ತಿಸಮಾಧಾನಗಳು ಬರಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ಶೈಶವ-ಯೌವನಗಳು ಆವಶ್ಯಕ. ಹಾಗಾಗಿ, ಒಬ್ಬ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಯ ವೈಯಕ್ತಿಕ ಮತ್ತು ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ ಜೀವನ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿರಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಆಶ್ರಮವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆಯನ್ನು ಯಥಾಶಕ್ತಿ, ಯಥಾಸ್ಥಿತಿ ಕಾಪಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು ಆವಶ್ಯಕ.

|| ಇತಿ ಶಮ್||

ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ - ೧

(ಈ ಲೇಖನ ನೆನ್ನೆ ಬರೆದದ್ದು)

ಇಂದು ಉತ್ಥಾನದ್ವಾದಶೀ. ದೀಪಾವಳಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಉಳಿದ ಪಟಾಕಿಗಳನ್ನು ಸುಟ್ಟು ಸಂಭ್ರಮಪಡುವ 'ಕಿರುದೀಪಾವಳಿ'. ಕೃಷ್ಣ-ತುಳಸಿಯರ ವಿವಾಹವನ್ನು ಸಂಭ್ರಮದಿಂದ ಆಚರಿಸುವ ದಿನ. ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯರೀತ್ಯಾ ಇದೇ ದಿನ ಅನಾಮಿಕೆಯನ್ನು ಸಾರ್ಥಕಗೊಳಿಸಿದ* ಕವಿಕುಲಗುರು ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನ ಜನ್ಮದಿನ.

ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನ ದೇಶ-ಕಾಲಗಳ ಕುರಿತು ನಮಗೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಗೊತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ. ಅವನು ಕುರುಬನಾಗಿದ್ದು, ನಂತರ ಕಾಳಿಯ ಪ್ರಸಾದದಿಂದ ವರಕವಿಯಾಗಿ ಭೋಜರಾಜನ ಆಸ್ಥಾನದಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಎಂಬುದು ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧವಾದ (ದಂತ?)ಕಥೆ. ಇದಾವುದೂ ಐತಿಹಾಸಿಕವಾಗಿ ಸಿದ್ಧವಾಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಸ್ವತಃ ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನ ಕೃತಿಗಳಿಂದ ಅವನಿಗೆ ಉಜ್ಜಯಿನೀನಗರ ಅತಿಪ್ರಿಯವಾಗಿತ್ತು** ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ಆಧಾರವಾಗಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ಅದೇ ಅವನ ವಾಸಸ್ಥಾನವಾಗಿತ್ತು ಎಂದು ತೀರ್ಮಾನಿಸಬಹುದು, ಅಷ್ಟೇ.

ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನ ಧರ್ಮಪ್ರಜ್ಞೆ ಅನ್ಯಾದೃಶವಾದದ್ದು. ಶೃಂಗಾರಕವಿಯೆಂದೇ ಕೆಲವೊಮ್ಮೆ ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧನಾದರೂ ಶೃಂಗಾರಕ್ಕಿಂತ ಹೆಚ್ಚಾಗಿ ನಮಗೆ ಅವನ ಕಾವ್ಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಣುವುದು ಒಂದು ಉತ್ತಮವಾದ, ಪಾಲನೆಗೆ ಯೋಗ್ಯವಾದ ಜೀವನಾದರ್ಶ ಹಾಗೂ ಗಂಭೀರವಾದ, ಉದಾರವಾದ ಅಂತರ್ದೃಷ್ಟಿ. ಶೃಂಗಾರ ಹೇರಳವಾಗಿ ಇರುವುದಾದರೂ ಆ ಶೃಂಗಾರವೂ ಧರ್ಮಪ್ರಜ್ಞೆ ಮತ್ತು ಉದಾರತೆಗಳಿಗೆ ಪೂರಕವಾಗಿಯೇ ಇದೆ. ದುಷ್ಯಂತ-ಶಕುಂತಲೆಯರ ಪ್ರಣಯವಾಗಲಿ, ಔಶೀನರಿಯ ತ್ಯಾಗವಿರಲಿ, ಕಣ್ವರಿಗೆ ಶಕುಂತಲೆಯನ್ನು ಕಳುಹಿಸುವಾಗ ಉಂಟಾಗುವ ದುಃಖವಾಗಲಿ, ದಿಲೀಪನ ತಪಸ್ಸಾಗಲಿ ಕೌತ್ಸನ ಪ್ರಸಂಗವಾಗಲಿ, ಎಲ್ಲೆಡೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾನವೀಯತೆ-ಉದಾರತೆಗಳೇ ಕಾಣಿಸುತ್ತವೆ. ಒಟ್ಟಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಹೇಳಬೇಕಾದರೆ, ರಘುವಂಶ-ಶಾಕುಂತಲಾದಿ ಕೃತಿಗಳು ಸುಖದಲ್ಲಿ ಮುದವನ್ನು ನೀಡಿ, ಕಷ್ಟದಲ್ಲಿ ದೃಢತೆಯ ನೆಲೆಯಾಗಿ ನಿಲ್ಲುವ ದಾರಿದೀಪಗಳು.

'ಉಪಮಾ ಕಾಲಿದಾಸಸ್ಯ' ಎಂಬ ಶ್ಲೋಕಪಾದ ಸರ್ವವಿದಿತ. ಆದರೆ ಅದೇ ಶ್ಲೋಕದ*** ಇನ್ನೆರಡು ಗುಣಗಳೂ (ಅರ್ಥಗೌರವ, ಪದಲಾಲಿತ್ಯ) ಸರ್ವಥಾ ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನಿಗೂ ಸಲ್ಲುತ್ತವೆ ಎಂದು ನನ್ನ ಭಾವನೆ. ಕಾಲಿದಾಸನ ಉಪಮೆಗಳಂತೂ ಮನೋಹರವಾಗಿ, ಕೇಳಿದೊಡನೆಯೇ "ಆಹಾ" ಎಂದು ಅನ್ನಿಸುವಂತೆ ಮಾಡುವವು.

ಮುಂಬರುವ ಕೆಲವು ಕಂತುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ, ಕಾಳಿದಾಸನ ಕೃತಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ (ಮುಖ್ಯವಾಗಿ ಶಾಕುಂತಲ ಮತ್ತು ರಘುವಂಶ) ನನಗೆ ಕಂಡ ಸ್ವಾರಸ್ಯಕರ ವಿಷಯಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಬರೆಯಲು ಪ್ರಯತ್ನಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.



*ಪುರಾ ಕವೀನಾಂ ಗಣನಾಪ್ರಸಂಗೇ ಕನಿಷ್ಠಿಕಾಧಿಷ್ಠಿತಕಾಲಿದಾಸಾ |
ಅದ್ಯಾಪಿ ತತ್ತುಲ್ಯಕವೇರಭಾವಾತ್ ಅನಾಮಿಕಾ ಸಾರ್ಥವತೀ ಬಭೂವ ||
- ಹಿಂದೆ ಕವಿಗಳ ಎಣಿಕೆ ನಡೆಯುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾಗ ಕಿರುಬೆರಳಿನಲ್ಲಿ (ಅಂದರೆ ಮೊದಲು) ನಿಂತದ್ದು ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ. ಈಗಲೂ ಅವನಿಗೆ ಸದೃಶನಾದ ಕವಿಯ ಅಭಾವದ ಕಾರಣದಿಂದ (ಉಂಗುರದ ಬೆರಳಿಗೆ) 'ಅನಾಮಿಕಾ' ಎಂಬ ಹೆಸರು ಅನ್ವರ್ಥವಾಯಿತು!

** ಸ್ವಲ್ಪೀಭೂತೇ ಸುಚರಿತಫಲೇ ಸ್ವರ್ಗಿಣಾಂ ಗಾಂ ಗತಾನಾಂ
ಶೇಷೈ: ಪುಣ್ಯೈರ್ಹೃತಮಿವ ದಿವಃ ಕಾಂತಿಮತ್ಖಂಡಮೇಕಮ್|
ಮೇಘದೂತದಲ್ಲಿ ಬರುವ ಒಂದು ಶ್ಲೋಕಾರ್ಧ.'ಸ್ವರ್ಗದಲ್ಲಿದ್ದು, ಪುಣ್ಯ ಕಡಿಮೆಯಾಗುತ್ತಿದ್ದಂತೆ ಭೂಮಿಗೆ ಬರುವವರು ತಮ್ಮ ಉಳಿದ ಪುಣ್ಯದಿಂದ ಸ್ವರ್ಗದ ಒಂದು ಸುಂದರವಾದ ಭಾಗವನ್ನು ಇಳೆಗೆ ತಂದಂತಿದೆ!' ಎಂದು ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ ಉಜ್ಜಯಿನಿಯನ್ನು ವರ್ಣಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಅವನಿಗೆ ಉಜ್ಜಯಿನಿಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಅಷ್ಟು ಪ್ರೀತಿ!

*** ಉಪಮಾ ಕಾಲಿದಾಸಸ್ಯ ಭಾರವೇರರ್ಥಗೌರವಮ್ |
ದಂಡಿನಃ ಪದಲಾಲಿತ್ಯಂ ಮಾಘೇ ಸಂತಿ ತ್ರಯೋ ಗುಣಾಃ ||

Animal Rights? Who Cares?

I have long been an advocate of animal rights. Probably even to the extent of Menaka Gandhi. When we were young, my sister and I used to take butterflies with broken wings and place them on flowers, childishly hoping that they would drink nectar from them. Now that I am an adult, I do not indulge in such things, but my concern for animals remains.

Yesterday, an eagle got shocked from the live wire near my window at work. A colleague and I called the Animal Rights Fund. We saw good advertisements about it on the web. And boy, was it a mistake! I had to leave early yesterday, and my poor colleague was at our workplace when the guys from ARF came. Apparently, they were rude and horribly uncaring about the bird. The details are too gory for me to go into them again, but the bird finally got scared and fell from the stairs and died.

Are all "non-profit" organizations like this? I am just writing this to get the anger out of my system. Okay, we do not expect them to be perfect gentlemen, but they should at least have a little concern about the creatures they have made their mission to save!

Our Journey Northward and Back - II

Our next visit was to Shani Shinganapur. When I was a child, I had seen a program on TV, about this place. The presiding deity of this place is Shani, whose icon is unsheltered from wind and rain. The beauty of this place is that there are absolutely no doors to any building in the village. And there have never been any thefts or robberies. In fact, the no-door policy has been so scrupulously followed that there are no doors even to the toilets! Swami Vivekananda had once remarked that the life of India was her religion. Nothing moves the average Indian more than religious faith and fervor. The doorless toilets were a testimony to this fact.

From Shani Shinganapur we went to Ellora, stopping briefly at Bibi ka Maqbara. Ellora was something out of a dream. "Unbelievable" and "Magnificent" only begin to describe the temples. We first went to the Jain caves, which are located atop a hill. One could see that the sculptors paid a lot of attention to detail. For instance, Indra and Kubera were always shown being a little on the fatter side. From the size of the temples, it is evident that they were not just used for religious purposes. Near the temple of Kailasanatha, there is a beautiful waterfall. There is a lookout point built in the temple, from where one can have a fine view of the waterfall. There are also stone steps leading to the small lake formed by the waterfall. To me, this was a classic example of understanding Nature, using it to the fullest, but not defiling it. I wondered how this place was, a thousand years ago on the day of a fair, say. It was probably teeming with devotees, noblemen, dancers and shops, the what-have-yous. Will a tourist, thousand years hence, visiting, say Vidhanasaudha, also wonder the same way? Only Time will tell.

From Ellora, we came to Ghrishneshwar, my first Jyotirlinga. The sanctum was crowded, it was hot and we were tired. The temple itself is pretty recent, but the concept of jyotirlingas has been in Indian lore for more than a thousand years. The beauty of jyotirlingas is that they are distributed all over India, like the Shaktipeethas . There are other groups of temples which are located within a few hundred miles of one another, like the navagraha temples and the panchabhUtasthalas in Tamil Nadu, but these places do not inspire the same kind of awe in me.

The next day was reserved for Shirdi. We roamed the whole day in the temple complex (which, IMO, comprised the whole village in Sai Baba's time), Dwarakamai and a couple of other small temples. After the darshan, we went to get some udhi. The procedure is this. You go in a queue, and each person gets one small packet of udhi. As far as my knowledge goes, udhi cannot be bought anywhere. People go in the queue a few times, to get as many udhi packets as they want. Biyadiya saw this and probably thought that it was expected of him, too. He rushed between the railings, and since he is too short to reach the counter, peeped in through the door and asked "udhi ideya?". The good-humored man behind the counter gave him a packet too. We all had a good laugh.

That same day, we left for Tryambakeshwar, the second jyotirlinga in our list. We spent the night at T., and early next morning, we had the darshan. The temple is very beautiful, situated amidst lush green hills, from where the river Godavari takes her birth. Soon after darshan, I had my first batata vada, which was to be my staple diet for the next couple of days.

Our next destination was Nasik. There are about nine temples there, but the place that moved me the most was the river Godavari. Till we got to the very edge of the river, I felt like we were going to enter another temple. Then suddenly, there were steps leading to the water, children bathing and throwing water on one another playfully. Little Biyadiya wanted to go and play in the water, too. He stood on the first step that had water and jumped about until his trousers were wet and muddy. Godavari was really dirty, but beautiful in its own way. I got goosebumps at the thought that Sita had, once upon a time, bathed here. I repeated the line "janakatanayA-snAna-puNyOdakeShu" to myself umpteen times while performing a short puja and let a lamp adorned with flowers, float on the water. Who cares what Karunanidhi says? Sita existed, and still exists in the hearts of billions of Indians! My thoughts went on similar lines, until Biyadiya pointed at the diving kids and cried "Takeshi's castle!" and brought me out of my reverie.

I took in as many sights as I could, trying not to miss anything, but eighty percent of my faculties were engaged in keeping Biyadiya from wandering too far from us. (He is perfectly at home with large crowds and he loves anything connected with water - takes after me and not his Dad, in that aspect.) While traveling in Washington, D.C., I had seen a lady who had two kids tethered to her. I had found it a little odd at that moment, but two days into this trip, I was wondering if I could find a tether that would be easy on both our tummies. It is another matter that I could not find one, but brought Biyadiya safely back to Bangalore.

In the next part of this series, I will write about the Ashtavinayaka temples and Bhimashankar and our journey back.

Our journey northward and back - Part I

I am not a great traveler. Though I have my share of devotion towards God and my country and love for other countries, I prefer to sit on my armchair and read about them, rather than taking the trouble of actually visiting them. Shirdi, Nasik , the jyotirlingas, Shivneri fort - I had read about all of these places, but if not for my parents' coaxing, I do not think I would have budged from Bangalore. Finally, after two full months of planning, our trip to Maharashtra happened last week. R, Biyadiya and I, my parents, my brother and grandmother, and my sister's family formed the group of travelers (=pilgrims).

The first leg of our journey was by train. I love traveling by trains. For one and a half years, when I was working in Madras, I travelled by train almost every weekend. However, one big difference from those journeys to this one, was the length. Journey from Bangalore to Chennai takes about 7 hours. This journey took nearly twenty hours. While the Bangalore-Chennai journey does not interfere with one's bath and breakfast timings, this one definitely did. R and I did not want to eat before taking bath, but were forced to eat some food to sustain ourselves.

The closest little Biyadiya had ever been to a train other than Thomas, was when he had once waved at it from a distance of more than one hundred meters. The second we got into our seats, he stated wailing pitifully, asking to get off. I knew that there would be some resistance, as he had shown earlier that he disliked bus-travel also. But half an hour after the train started moving, R, my father and a policeman ("rona nahin!"), were successful in calming him down. He gradually took to the train so much, that he actually did not want to get off the train, when we reached Kopargaon!

I hail from Bellary, as I have said elsewhere. The vegetation in those parts of Karnataka is mainly the 'jaalimuLLu' plants. The fields are usually sown with chili and jowar. Now, I have not visited North Karnataka in quite a while, and it was really nice to see those same things again. My eyes feasted again on the stony hills and the black soil. Shirdi and the surrounding places are also what we can call 'bayaluseeme', unlike Pune and its surroundings, which is more like malenaaDu.

At Shirdi, The cleanliness of the premises and the discipline at the temple and at Bhaktanivas, which is the travelers' lodge, were very impressive. There are a few colorful fountains at the entrance to the temple. Both of us (my little one and I) were quite taken by them and spent a long time in front of them. Since elderly people are let in without adherence to the queue, with an escort, my Mother who was worried about Biyadiya, bade me go with my grandma and finish my darshan. It was a very rewarding experience.

For two full months, we had debated on whether we could take little Biyadiya for the trip. Finally, the Great Man at Shirdi made us take him. And we never regretted it once. The only problem for him was food. He is as picky an eater as I am, and sourcing food for us was R's biggest worry throughout. I did not find the idlis and dosas of Maharashtra palatable. Biyadiya agreed with me and went on a hunger strike. I had to then buy Cerelac for him, to keep his energy levels (and mine) up. However, Maharashtrians make Vada pav and Batata vada, which are tasty even when eaten at roadside stalls. I succumbed to those, and hunger pangs did not bother me a lot, afterwards. An interesting thing about the hotels there, was the 'upvaas' menu. I did not try it out at all, but was impressed to see that there was somebody paying enough attention to their upvaas, even while traveling.

This trip was the longest one we have undertaken in at least five years. Since I wish to do it justice, I will continue the travelogue in the next one or two installments.

ಸರ್ವೇಷಾಂ ರೋದನಂ ಬಲಂ!

ಕರ್ಣಾಟಕದಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆಯುತ್ತಿರುವ ರಾಜಕೀಯ-ನಾಟಕ ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಗೊತ್ತಿರುವಂಥದ್ದು. ಅಧಿಕಾರ ತಮ್ಮೊಬ್ಬರದ್ದೇ ಸ್ವತ್ತು ಎಂದು ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡವರಿಂದ ಇನ್ನೇನು ತಾನೇ ನಿರೀಕ್ಷಿಸಬಹುದು?

ಇಷ್ಟೆಲ್ಲದರಲ್ಲಿ, ನನ್ನ ಗಮನ ಸೆಳೆದಿದ್ದು ದೇವೇಗೌಡರ ಹೆಂಡತಿಯ ಅಳಲು. ದಟ್ಸ್ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಒಂದು ವರದಿಯ ಪ್ರಕಾರ, ಎ ದೇವೇಗೌಡರ ಪತ್ನಿ ಚೆನ್ನಮ್ಮನವರು ಜೆಡಿಎಸ್ ನ ಶಾಸಕರಲ್ಲಿ "ಬಿಜೆಪಿ ಸೇರಬೇಡಿ. ನೀವು ಬಿಜೆಪಿ ಸೇರಿದರೆ ನನ್ನ ಪತಿ ಉಳಿಯುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ನನ್ನ ಮಾಂಗಲ್ಯ ಉಳಿಸುವ ಶಕ್ತಿ ನಿಮ್ಮಲ್ಲಿದೆ" ಎಂದು ಅಂಗಲಾಚಿದರಂತೆ. ಇನ್ನೊಂದೆಡೆ ಕುಮಾರಸ್ವಾಮಿಯವರ ಪತ್ನಿ "ನಮ್ಮ ಮಾವನವರ ಮಾತು ಕೇಳಿ ನನ್ನ ಗಂಡ ಹಾಳಾಗಿಹೋದರು" ಎಂದು ಬಿಕ್ಕುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾರಂತೆ. ಇದೇ ವಿಷಯವಾಗಿ ಇದ್ದ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಸುದ್ದಿ ಏನೆಂದರೆ ಗೌಡರು "ಅಧಿಕಾರ-ಹಸ್ತಾಂತರವಾದರೆ ನೇಣು ಹಾಕಿಕೊಂಡು ಸಾಯುತ್ತೇನೆ" ಎಂದಿದ್ದು, ಹಾಗೂ ರೇವಣ್ಣ "ತಂದೆಯ ಸಾವಿಗೆ ನೀನೇ ಕಾರಣನಾಗುತ್ತೀಯೆ" ಎಂದು ಕುಮಾರಸ್ವಾಮಿಯವರನ್ನು ಹೆದರಿಸಿದ್ದು.

ಬಹುಶಃ ಭಾರತದ ಸಿನಿಮಾಗಳಂತೆಯೇ ಭಾರತೀಯರಾಜಕೀಯದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ emotional blackmail ಕೆಲಸ ಮಾಡುತ್ತದೆಯೋ ಏನೋ!

Cobwebs, Cobras and Luck

The other day, the main door of our house happened to be closed for an unusually long time in the evening. I happened to be the first one to open the door, and walked straight into a cobweb. I "Ewww!"ed and went hastily inside, wiping my face and neck. My Mother-in-law saw this and said "You know, walking into cobwebs is supposed to be very lucky". I felt a little better. (No, cobwebs are not common in our house :D)

But that got me thinking. I am not aware if this happens in other cultures also, but some very unpleasant things are regarded as lucky in India. Take, for example, the sighting of a cobra with its hood raised. That is supposed to be a very good thing to happen to somebody. Of course, I assume that this works only if the person keeps his/her head and walks away from it and not towards it, in reach of its fangs! There are loads of other such superstitions(?) about not-so-pleasant things, like squint-eyes and wisdom teeth growing at awkward angles.

I wonder what the reason is, behind this. I can think of one explanation. It is probably just a way to make a person feel better about an unpleasant experience. Imagine what it would do to the morale of the squint-eyed person if someone referred to him as, you know, the lucky one! Suppose somebody is shaken because of his encounter with a cobra, what is a better way to console him than to say "You know, you're really lucky!"?

That said, what is luck? We wish others luck before exams and before weddings. We carry lucky pens that hardly write and wear lucky dresses that are ragged. And at home, I am not allowed to watch any cricket match when India is playing, because that's supposed to be bad luck for the Indian team. I really wonder how much more presumptuous we can get, thinking that one person watching or not watching India play can influence their victory or defeat.

Is it a good idea to make Team India visit the Snake Park before their upcoming match against Australia? :))

What the Indian wore

When I was reading Aram's comments on an old post, I felt that I had to write something about dressing, however ill-qualified I am to write about good dressing. I am like Bertram Wooster writing 'What the well-dressed man is wearing', while wearing a bright red cummerbund. However, here goes...

The celebrated commentator on Kalidasa's works, Mallinatha, was once teased by a few urchins about his tattered clothes. Immediately Mallinatha retorted "kim vAsasA chIkiri-bAkirENa ... vaiduShyamekaM viduShaam sahaayam" (= what if the clothes are tattered, ... knowledge is the only companion of the learned). Clothes, though often derided as superficial and a token of vanity in both men and women, reflect the culture of the society.

Even from very ancient times, the traditional dress of the Indian male has remained unchanged. A dhoti and an uttareeya are enough to dress him elegantly. Some men wear turbans and other head-dresses, but I do not know if it is common. Shaving the head of all hair except a tuft called shikhe, is required. This is mostly the mark of professional priests, these days. But folks at ISKCON also sport a shikhe. I know of a gentleman in the US who crops his hair regularly, but leaves a few hair intact.

The distinction between a brahmachaari and grihastha in the matter of dress, itself is a nice thing to know. In the uddhava gIta in the twelfth skanda of the Bhaagavatam, some rules are laid down for the brahmachaari to follow. A brahmachaari is not supposed to shave his beard or moustache, not supposed to look at himself in the mirror and not apply perfume. In short, he is not supposed to pay any attention to how he looks. His sole aim should be to learn. (My Mom actually enforced this rule of no-alankaara on us when we were students, though we were girls!) Only after he completes his education, when he becomes a snaataka (graduate), is he to pay attention to his dress.

As far as I know, the grihastha is required to be clean-shaven and should always wear the uttareeya (the upper garment). The uttareeya can be worn in different ways - put on the left shoulder and wrapped around the chest from below the right arm, so that the right shoulder* is exposed, or draped around the shoulders so that the back is covered. Some people tie the uttareeya around their waist, because it is convenient.

In the olden days, it was necessary to wear clothes that were not stitched (asyUta-vastra). DVG, in his 'vaidika-dharma sampradAyastharu' remembers Chandrashekhara Avadhaani, tying up all the torn places in his dhoti, because stitching was not allowed. Even now, some people follow the no-stitching rule, but it is restricted only for times when religious ceremonies have to be performed.

As it is to be expected, women even in the olden times were fond of adorning themselves. Hardly any sanskrit poem is bereft of the description of women's dresses. Kalidaasa mentions lip-paint (OShTharAgaH) in Vikramorvsheeyam. In both Raghuvamsham and kumArasambhavam, he describes incompletely dressed ladies rushing out to see the newly-weds, Aja and Indumati in the former and Shiva-Parvati in the latter. In the fourth act of shaakuntalam, he describes various garments and jewels that the trees of the forest brought forth, to adorn Shakuntala.

When it comes to clothes, unlike the men's, women's dress has undergone a lot of change. In the olden days, women also used to wear un-stitched clothes. As far as I know, it used to be a three-piece garment. But now, the traditional dress is the sari and a blouse. While dhotis are worn in the same way throughout India, there are at least ten different ways to wear a sari. In Karnataka itself, we have the Kodagu type, the North-Karnataka-type of kacche and the usual city-way. Bengalis, Tamilians, Maharashtrians all wear their sarees in distinctive ways. While women in many parts of North India cover their heads with their pallus, South Indian women (except in North Karnataka, I guess) do not. This custom is probably because of the weather, or because of repeated invasions of North India by outsiders.

To quote a cliche, change is the only constant thing in life. Old costumes give way for new ones, which give way for newer ones. Fashion should always follow comfort. But it is always nice to reminisce about old costumes, just like old times. While we cannot relive old times, we can still wear the old costumes, right?


*The right shoulder is regarded as the place where Gods enter the body at birth. A part of the first samskaara, jaatakarma, is medhaajanana, where the father touches the right shoulder of his just-born, before the umbilical cord is cut. Supposedly, this will make the child follow the tradition of the father. This information from Devudu's mahaadarshana.

Jaiajaiavanti, Dvijavanti and Dikshitar

Hindustani and Carnatic raagas are often easily distinguishable. While Carnatic raagas use all kinds of gamaka (kampita, jaaru and flat notes without gamaka), Hindustani music has more of jaaru gamaka and flat notes. This difference in the nature of the raagas itself, however, has not prevented Carnatic musicians from adopting Hindustani raagas and viceversa.

Muttuswami Dikshitar, a revered name in Carnatic music, belonged to a family of glorious experimenters, whose creations thrive even to this day. His brother, Baluswami Dikshitar, brought violin to Carnatic music as a side-instrument (pakkavAdya). His father, Ramaswami Dikshitar, created Hamsadhvani, an extremely popular raga. Muttuswami Dikshitar's erudition in Sanskrit, Shrividya, Vedas, Astrology and many other branches of knowledge, resulted in some of the finest compositions in Carnatic music. 'akshayalinga vibho' of Shankaraabharana, 'maanasa guruguharUpam bhaja re' in Anandabhairavi, 'mInAkshi me mudam dEhi' of pUrvikalyANi and a few other kritis of his are my favorites. And I added a new favorite to my list just today. 'chetaH shrI bAlakrishnam bhaja re' is a very beautiful kriti by Dikshitar. It is set in Dvijaavanti, the Carnatic adaptation of the Hindustani raga Jaijaivanti.

When I heard the name 'jaijaivanti', I could not place it immediately. Then a google search told me that the song 'manmohana bade jhoothe' from the movie 'Seema', was set in the same raaga. (Is it coincidence that today is Krishnajanmaashtami, and all the songs I come across are related to Lord Krishna? Incidentally, 'manmohana...' is also one of my favorites.) It is a night raaga, born from the Khamaj thaat. The scale is (from http://www.surdhwani.com/mus_raga.html)
Sa Ri2 Ga2 R2 Sa Dha2 Ni2 Pa Ri2, Ga3 Ma Pa, Ni3 Sa
Sa Ni3 Dha2 Pa, Dha2 Ma, Ga3 Ri ga2 Ri2 Sa

The modern Dvijavanti is a direct derivative of the raaga jaijaivanti. However, Dvijavanti (named thus because of two 'jai's in the name) as conceived by Dikshitar, though said to be derived from Jaijaivanti, resembles not only jaijaivanti but also sahana in some places, and yadukulakaambhoji in some others. The result is a mellifluous melody which leaves one with longing for the divine child of Yashoda. (I could not find the scale for Dikshitar's Dvijavanti. Will post as soon as I find it.)

In the kriti 'chetaH shrI balakrishnam', Dikshitar has used the mood from all the three ragas in a masterly way. The first line of the charaNa, 'navanIta-gandhavAha-vadanam' (= one whose mouth smells of butter), the svaras are arranged in such a way as to remind one of cold breeze. Not a wind, not a tempest or a storm, but just pleasing, soft and cool breeze. In fact, this is the greatness of Dikshitar. The mood of his music always enriches the mood of the sahitya, and viceversa.

My salutations to Dikshitar and his Dvijavanti on the day of Gokulashtami.

You Are Free... You're Not...

Years ago, when I had fancied myself to be a right-winger and slightly authoritarian, I took an online test that assessed my political inclination. I was a little surprised at the results. I was a right-winger, but so much to the center that it did not matter; and I was a libertarian!

I am all for law and order and discipline. People need a physically, mentally and spiritually safe place to live. But it is wrong for anybody to assume that to make other people feel good, one has to keep bending over backwards and accede to every wish of the other party. This is true in all cases, whether it is the case of travelers in a train shutting up because a co-traveler takes unkindly to their conversation, or the case of Vande Mataram not being sung in schools because a certain group of people is not comfortable with it. A compromise has to be worked out, but it is a crime against oneself if he/she genuinely believes that others matter more than oneself.

I am a huge fan of Ayn Rand and her philosophy. I believe that one exists and needs to exist for oneself only. Even if we avow that we are doing something to please somebody, finally it is our own gratification that will result out of it. Indeed, the line "आत्मनस्तु कामाय सर्वं प्रियं भवति" from the BrihadAraNyakopaniShat can be construed to mean that. And to take it further, if an action brings unhappiness to oneself, it is wrong. Oh, yes, you will be called 'selfish' if you ascribe to this philosophy, but in the end you will end up being much better, and of much value to the society.

I know I am treading controversial ground here. For eons, we have been taught to be accommodating. But how right is it to ask people to give up their comforts for others' sake? Consider this scenario. Suppose I am a pianist, and a writer lives next-door. The writer complained everytime I started playing the piano? Should I give in each and every time and let him write? In some situations it is easy to draw a solid line and say that it is trespassing on the liberty of the other person if that line is crossed. Al Qaeda's recent statement that it is their legitimate right to attack Delhi and Moscow, belongs to this category. In umpteen other situations, very fine lines divide liberty from lawlessness and discipline from oppression.

During the French Revolution, the oppressed lower classes of the society revolted against the aristocracy, and put many of their oppressors to death by guillotine. The royal family, aristocrats and supporters of the aristocrats alike were killed. But the revolters became bloodthirsty after that and started killing for flimsy reasons (the whole revolution is superbly described by Charles Dickens in 'A Tale of Two Cities'). What started out as a fight for liberty became lawlessness and chaos. And I think that the reason for this was the failure to see liberty as it was, as a right as well as a responsibility.

As with all things, liberty also comes with certain costs and some responsibilities. As one becomes more and more independent, far less people tend to guide him. He is on his own, and must rely on his own experience to wade through the ocean of life. And of course, he should be responsible enough to not topple others' boats while enjoying his swim. And it will be better for others, if he takes up the additional responsibility of helping others sail, if not swim like him...

Really, are we free?

ಕೆಟ್ಟ, ಕೆಡುತ್ತಿರುವ ಕನ್ನಡ

ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಮಿತ್ರರೊಬ್ಬರು ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿದರು "ಏನ್ರಿ, 'ಸಾಫ್ಟ್‌ವೇರ್' ಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಏನು ಹೇಳ್ತಾರೆ?" ಎಂದು. ನಾನು "ತಂತ್ರಾಂಶ" ಎಂದು ಉತ್ತರಿಸಿದೆ. ಅವರು ಎರಡು ಕ್ಷಣ ಯೋಚಿಸಿ "'ಅಭಿಯಂತ' ಎಂದರೆ ಇಂಜಿನಿಯರ್ ಅಲ್ಲವೇನ್ರಿ?" ಎಂದು ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಹೌದೆಂದೆ. ಆಗ ಅವರು "ಹಾಗಿದ್ದರೆ ನನ್ನ ವೃತ್ತಿಯನ್ನು 'ತಂತ್ರಾಂಶ-ಅಭಿಯಂತ' ಎಂದು ನಮೂದಿಸಬಹುದೆ?" ಎಂದು ಕೇಳಿದರು. ನಾನು ಅವಾಕ್ಕಾದೆ.

ಕನ್ನಡಭಾಷೆ ಬಹಳ ಸೊಗಸಾದ, ಮುದ್ದಾದ ಭಾಷೆ. ಆದರೆ ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಕೇಳಿಬರುತ್ತಿರುವ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಸೊಗಸು ಕಾಣಿಸುತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ. ವಾರ್ತಾಪತ್ರಿಕೆಗಳಲ್ಲಾಗಲಿ, ದೂರದರ್ಶನದಲ್ಲಾಗಲಿ ಕಾಣ/ಕೇಳಿಬರುವ ಕನ್ನಡ ಬಹಳ ಸಲ ಸಹನಶೀಲೆಯಾದ ಕನ್ನಡ-ತಾಯಿಗೇ ಅಳು ಬರಿಸುವಂತಿರುತ್ತದೆ.

ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತ ಮತ್ತು ಕನ್ನಡಪದಗಳನ್ನು ಸೇರಿಸಿ ಮಾಡುವ ಸಮಾಸ ಅರಿಸಮಾಸ. ಕುಮಾರವ್ಯಾಸನ ಭಾರತದಲ್ಲಿ ಅಲ್ಲಲ್ಲಿ ಅರಿಸಮಾಸಗಳ ಪ್ರಯೋಗವಿದೆ ಎಂದು ಕೇಳಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಪ್ರತಿದಿನ ಬೆಳಗಿನ ಪತ್ರಿಕೆಯನ್ನು ತೆಗೆದು ಎರಡು ನಿಮಿಷ ಓದಿದರೆ ಹೊಸ ಹೊಸ ಅರಿಸಮಾಸಗಳು ಕಣ್ಣಿಗೆ ರಾಚುತ್ತವೆ. ಕುಮಾರವ್ಯಾಸ ಅರಿಸಮಾಸಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾಡಿದ ಎಂಬುದನ್ನೇ ಪ್ರಮಾಣವಾಗಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ಸಿಕ್ಕ ಸಿಕ್ಕ ಪದಗಳೆಲ್ಲಕ್ಕೂ ಸಮಾಸ ಮಾಡಲು ಹೊರಟರೆ ಸರಿಯೇ? 'ಸದ್ಬಳಕೆ', 'ಸಂಪರ್ಕ-ಕೊಂಡಿ' - ಒಂದೇ ಎರಡೇ? ಇವು ವ್ಯಾಕರಣರೀತ್ಯಾ ಅಶುದ್ಧವಷ್ಟೇ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಕೇಳಲು ಸಹ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಕೇಳಲಾದರೂ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿದ್ದರೆ ಒಪ್ಪಿಕೊಳ್ಳಬಹುದೇನೋ...

ಸಮಾಸಗಳದೊಂದಾದರೆ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ವಿಶೇಷಣಗಳದ್ದು. ಅನೇಕರ ಬರೆಹಗಳಲ್ಲಿ "ಬುದ್ಧಿಮಾಂದ್ಯ ಮಕ್ಕಳು" ಎಂಬ ಪದಪುಂಜ ಕಾಣುತ್ತದೆ. ಮಂದ ಬುದ್ಧಿ ಇರುವವರು ಬುದ್ಧಿಮಂದರು. ಬುದ್ಧಿಮಂದರ ಭಾವ ಬುದ್ಧಿಮಾಂದ್ಯ. ಹೀಗೆ ಬುದ್ಧಿಮಾಂದ್ಯ ಒಂದು ನಾಮಪದ. ಈ ಪದ "ಮಕ್ಕಳು" ಎಂಬ ಪದಕ್ಕೆ ವಿಶೇಷಣವಾಗಲು ಹೇಗೆ ಸಾಧ್ಯ? ಪ್ರೊ. ಜಿ. ವೆಂಕಟಸುಬ್ಬಯ್ಯನವರು 'ಅಂಗವಿಕಲ' ಎಂಬ ಪದಕ್ಕೆ ಬದಲಾಗಿ 'ವಿಕಲಚೇತನ' ಎಂಬ ಪದವನ್ನು ಸೂಚಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಹಾಗೆ ಸೂಚಿಸಿದಾಗ ಅವರು ಪ್ರಾಯಃ ಅನ್ಯಮನಸ್ಕರಾಗಿದ್ದರೇನೋ. 'ಅಂಗವಿಕಲ'ರ ಅಂಗ(ಗಳು) ಮಾತ್ರ ವಿಕಲ. ಆದರೆ ವಿಕಲಚೇತನರ ಮನಸ್ಸು-ಬುದ್ಧಿ-ಆತ್ಮಗಳೇ ವಿಕಲ!(ಚೇತನ = soul , mind L. ; n.consciousness , understanding , sense , intelligence) ಆಂಗ್ಲದ 'differently abled' ಎಂಬ ಅರ್ಥ ತರಲು ಹೋಗಿ ಇದು ಎಂತಹ ಆಭಾಸವಾಯಿತು! ಕನ್ನಡದ ಎಲ್ಲ ಪತ್ರಿಕೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಈ ಪದಗಳು ರಾರಾಜಿಸುತ್ತವೆ ಎಂಬುದು ದುಃಖದ ಸಂಗತಿ.

ಇದೇ ತೆರನಾದ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಸಮಸ್ಯೆ "ಪ್ರಾಧಾನ್ಯತೆ", "ನೈಪುಣ್ಯತೆ" ಮುಂತಾದ "ತೆ" ಗಳದ್ದು. ಪ್ರಧಾನನ ಭಾವ ಪ್ರಾಧಾನ್ಯ, ನಿಪುಣನ(ಳ) ಭಾವ ನೈಪುಣ್ಯ. 'ಪ್ರಧಾನ' ಮತ್ತು 'ನಿಪುಣ' ಎಂಬ ಪದಗಳಿಗೆ 'ತೆ' ಎಂಬ ಪ್ರತ್ಯಯ ಸೇರಿಸಿ ಪ್ರಧಾನತೆ ಮತ್ತು ನಿಪುಣತೆ ಎಂದು ಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಹೇಳಬಹುದು. ಈ ಪ್ರಯೋಗದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಶೇಷಣಗಳಾದ ಪ್ರಧಾನ ಮತ್ತು ನಿಪುಣ ಎಂಬ ಪದಗಳು ನಾಮಪದಗಳಾಗುತ್ತವೆ. ಈಗ ಈ ಪದಗಳಿಗೆ - ಉದಾ. ಪ್ರಾಧಾನ್ಯ ಎಂಬ ಪದಕ್ಕೆ "ತೆ" ಎಂಬ ಪ್ರತ್ಯಯ ಸೇರಿಸಿದರೆ "ಪ್ರಧಾನನ ಭಾವದ ಭಾವ" ಎಂಬ ಅರ್ಥ ಉಂಟಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. 'ನೈಪುಣ್ಯತೆ' ಕೂಡ ಹಾಗೆಯೇ. ಇದನ್ನು ಅರ್ಥೈಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ನನ್ನ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ವಿಫಲವಾಗಿ ಇದನ್ನು ಅಪಶಬ್ದಗಳ ಗುಂಪಿಗೆ ಸೇರಿಸಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ನೀವೇನಂತೀರಿ?

ಇನ್ನು ಜಾಹೀರಾತುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕೇಳಿಬರುವ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ. ಹಿಂದೆ ಉತ್ಪನ್ನಗಳು ಕಡಿಮೆ ಇದ್ದುದರಿಂದಲೋ ಏನೋ, ಜಾಹೀರಾತುಗಳು ಕಡಿಮೆ ಇರುತ್ತಿದ್ದವು. ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಯೋಗಿಸಿದ ಭಾಷೆ ಕೂಡ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿರುತ್ತಿತ್ತು. "ನನ್ನ ನಲ್ಲನ ಹೊಲದಲ್ಲಿ..." ಎಂಬ ರೇಡಿಯೊ-ದ ಜಾಹೀರಾತಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಶಬ್ದಾಲಂಕಾರವೂ ಕಾಣುತ್ತದೆ. ಆ ಜಾಹೀರಾತುಗಳ ದರ್ಜೆ ಅದು. ಆದರೆ ಇಂದು? ಪುನಃ-ಚಿತ್ರೀಕರಣ ದುಬಾರಿಯಾದುದರಿಂದ ಹಿಂದಿಯಲ್ಲೋ ತಮಿಳಿನಲ್ಲೋ ಇರುವ ಜಾಹೀರಾತನ್ನು ಡಬ್ ಮಾಡಲಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ನಮ್ಮವರು ಅದೇ ರಾಗಗಳಿಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಸಾಹಿತ್ಯವನ್ನು ಜೋಡಿಸಿ ಅದನ್ನು ಪ್ರದರ್ಶಿಸುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಕನ್ನಡದಂತೆ ಒತ್ತಕ್ಷರಗಳು ಹಿಂದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇಲ್ಲವಾದ್ದರಿಂದ ಈ ಜಾಹೀರಾತುಗಳು ಕರ್ಣಕಠೋರವಾಗಿರುತ್ತವೆ. ಅದೇ ಸಂಗೀತವನ್ನು ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ಇನ್ನೂ ಚೆನ್ನಾದ ಸಾಹಿತ್ಯವನ್ನು ಅಳವಡಿಸಿ ಹಾಡಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಿದೆ. ಉದಾಹರಣೆಗೆ "ಬೆಸೆದಿರಲಿ... ಜೀವನದಾ-ಸಂಪರ್ಕ ಕೊಂಡಿ" ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು 'ಬೆಸೆದಿರಲಿ ಜೀವನದ ಮಧುರ ಬಾಂಧವ್ಯ.." ಎಂಬುದಾಗಿಯೋ, ಅಥವಾ ಇನ್ನೂ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿರುವ ಪದಗಳನ್ನು ಬಳಸಿ ಹಾಡಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲವೇ? ಈ ಕೆಲಸ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಕಷ್ಟ, ಆದರೂ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಸೊಗಸನ್ನು ಉಳಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಅಷ್ಟಾದರೂ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ಪಡಬಹುದು ಎಂದು ನನ್ನ ಭಾವನೆ.

ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಒಬ್ಬ ಹಿರಿಯರು ಸಖೇದರಾಗಿ "ಕನ್ನಡದ ಆಯುಷ್ಯ ಇನ್ನು ಎಪ್ಪತ್ತು-ಎಂಭತ್ತು ವರ್ಷಗಳಷ್ಟು ಮಾತ್ರ ಎಂದು ಅನ್ನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ" ಎಂದು ಹೇಳಿದರು. ಈಗಿನ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಪರಿಸ್ಥಿತಿ ನೋಡಿದರೆ ಅವರು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದು ನಿಜವೆಂದೇ ಅನ್ನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ. ನಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ ಕನ್ನಡನುಡಿಯ ಆಯುಷ್ಯವನ್ನು ಹೆಚ್ಚಿಸಲು ನಾವೇನು ಮಾಡಬಹುದು?

ಇದನ್ನೂ ಓದಿ:
Random ramblings: ಎಷ್ಟು ದಿವಸಗಳಾದವು ಬರೆದು!!

Drums and Camphor, Rice and ...

I was eating a peaceful lunch in the lunch room today, talking about mundane things that afflict employees everywhere. It was then that I heard the sound of drums beating in a simple rhythm. I did not give much thought to it, until the drum-beating crowd sounded like they had made a stop right in front of our office. I walked to the window to see what it was. There was an open lorry, with the icon of a Goddess, bedecked with jewels and adorned with flowers. A couple of people were holding umbrellas above Her head. I thought that it was the traditional aarati, and I was instantly reminded of my days in Madras. Every now and then, processions of Gods used to be taken on our road. There used to be naagaswaram playing beautifully. The house-fronts would be cleaned, and adorned with rangolis. We used to take camphor, fruit and coconuts and perform pooja. But this procession wasn't just that.

There was a water tank leading the lorry. God's path has to be clean, so these guys had ingeniously brought a tank along, with its faucet open. Drums were beating loudly and rhythmically. A couple of youngsters were dancing and looked like they were drunk. A man spread banana leaves side by side on the ground, right in front of the lorry. A couple of women served rice and some more dishes on them. A girl removed agarbattis from the wrapper, handed them to the chief priestess (?) and threw the wrapper on the roadside. I remained watching, mainly to see whether these guys would clean up as they left. On hindsight, I think that was too much of an expectation.

Agarbattis were burnt. Camphor was lit. There was real devotion and seriousness on the faces of the people standing around the lorry. The drum-beating then reached a feverish tempo. Two sheep were dragged in front of the lorry. That was the limit for me. I could not stomach it anymore. I just walked back to my seat. A while later, the beating of the drums stopped.

I have spent quite some time in small and large towns of Karnataka. Every year, in B__, there used to be the annual festival of the Mother Goddess, and animal sacrifice used to be a regular part of the proceedings. I do not know if it continues, though. During my tenth standard I lived in H___, another town. And exactly before my exams, cholera broke out. The folks there thought that it was because the Mother Goddess was angry. Therefore, to propitiate her, a festival was organized. Some thirty buffaloes, a lot of sheep and innumerable chicken were sacrificed. The devotees were not at all worried about cholera spreading even more because of their unhygenic practices.

Is there a law that bans animal sacrifice? Yes!

Hair = extension of the umbilical cord?

Little Biyadiya is one person I want to write about all the time, but I check myself. I am not comfortable about writing about someone that close. But I really could not keep myself from writing this one.

I have always felt a pang whenever he crossed one of his milestones. When he started solids, when I first left him at home and went out for a couple of hours, when he wanted to hold his cup of milk himself while drinking... The most recent one was cropping his hair.

His chaula was performed way back in April, when we had gotten a small amount of hair removed. I was postponing the real haircut, partly because I liked the look and the sweet smell of his dishevelled hair in the morning and partly because he would become a big boy after the haircut. But maintenance of his hair was becoming a big problem with him refusing to let us comb and tie them into a ponytail. So, his first haircut happpened yesterday.

Yesterday was an Independence day of a different sort for him. His head and face now look larger. And I confess that I preferred the old look better. And I want to confess that I might not oppose if he chose to have shoulder-length hair in future, as a youth, really!

Sacrifice vs. Righteousness

Concern for fellow-beings sets apart sajjanas from others. As a Sanskrit proverb goes,
मृदुलं नवनीतमीरितं नवनीतादपि सज्जनस्य हृत् ।
यदिदं द्रवते स्वतापनात् परतापात् सतां पुनः ॥
"Butter is said to be soft, but the sajjana's heart is softer. Butter melts only when it is heated, but the heart of the sajjana melts (even) when others are in
difficulty".

Years ago, there was a very short story in the Kannada magazine, Mayura (I think). The protagonist was a poet, very poor but large-hearted man, like the sajjana in the above shloka. His child was ill, and the whole family was clothed in rags. Our poet was at the end of his wits. At this juncture, he received an unexpected sum of money as a fee (as far as I remember). Then there was a knock on his door. A poor man had come to ask him for help; he wanted to get his daughter married and did not have the money. Our poet gave him all the money he had, and he walked away happily. The poet then told his wife, "What could I do? I have a poet's heart!" ("ನಾನೇನು ಮಾಡಲಿ? ನನ್ನದು ಕವಿಹೃದಯ"). The wife accepted his decision.

Even back then, I had a question. How could the heart that melted at the plight of the poor man, not melt at the sight of his own sick child?

A few days ago, December Stud said in a comment, that all of us are selfish, or should at least be selfish to a certain degree. That struck me as being true, and I got thinking about the various stories of self-sacrifice that appear so often in our mythology and literature. I then realized that I have never liked the extreme self-sacrifice that is, as a rule, praised to the Heavens.

What Jimutavaahana did, was against dharma, in my opinion. As the king, his duty was to protect all his subjects, but he chose to protect Shankhachuda alone, because he was there at the right time and place. His sacrifice had a good result, in that Garuda stopped harming naagas any further, but suppose it had gone unnoticed? True, Jimutavahana was a vidyaadhara and a bodhisattva. But I think I would have had far more respect for him if he had fought and subdued Garuda like a true Kshatriya. (I did not like naagaanandam, the play written by Harsha, either... Well, that's the topic for a separate post).

We have a more realistic view of sacrifice and kshatriyadharma in the Mahabharata. When Kunti offered to send Bhima with the food for Bakasura, even Yudhishthira, the epitome of righteousness, did not approve of the act (as far as I remember). However, this had a good result too; Bhima killed Baka. What appealed to me here was the "down-to-earth-ness" of Yudhishthira.

Sometimes, the idea that self-sacrifice always brings about good results, is comforting. At other times it is disturbing. Finally, it all comes down to doing the right thing, and not just sacrificing. But just how can we decide if what we are doing is right?

Another poem for chitrakavana

ಈ ಬಾರಿಯ ಚಿತ್ರಕವನದ ಹದಿಮೂರನೆಯ ಚಿತ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತದಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಮುಕ್ತಕವನ್ನು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದೇನೆ.

वीथीतटेष्वुशितमस्तु सुरालये वा
चीनाम्बरं धरतु वाथ विदीर्णचीरम् ।
अश्नातु मृष्टमनिशं किल वा कुभैक्ष्यम्
माता सदैव सुतलालन एव तृप्ता ॥

ರಸ್ತೆಬದಿಯಲ್ಲಿರಲಿ, ಸುರರ ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿರಲಿ, ಚೀನಾಂಬರ ಧರಿಸಿರಲಿ, ಹರಿದುದನ್ನುಟ್ಟಿರಲಿ, ಮೃಷ್ಟಾನ್ನವುಣ್ಣಲಿ, ಭಿಕ್ಷೆಯನು ಭಕ್ಷಿಸಲಿ,
ತಾಯಿಗೆ ತೃಪ್ತಿ ಸಿಗುವುದು ಮಗುವಿನ ಲಾಲನೆಯಲ್ಲಿಯೇ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ!

ಜೀವನಯಾತ್ರೆಯು ಸಾಗುತಿದೆ

ಚಿತ್ರಕವನದ ಹನ್ನೆರಡನೆಯ ಚಿತ್ರಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಎರಡು ಮುಕ್ತಕಗಳು

೧.
ಜನ್ಮಜನ್ಮಗಳ ಸಹಚರರಿವರು
ಜೀವನಯಾತ್ರೆಯ ಪಯಣಿಗರು
ಬಾಳಿನ ಸಂಜೆಯ ಸೊಬಗ ಹೀರುವರು
ಜೊತೆಜೊತೆಯಾಗಿಯೆ ನಲಿಯುವರು

೨.
ಕಣ್ಣಲಿ ಸೋಡ ಇದ್ದರೇನಂತೆ
ಚೆಲುವು ನೋಡುವರ ಕಣ್ಣಲ್ಲಿ!
ಅವರ ಕಣ್ಣಿಗಿವರೆಂದೂ ತರುಣಿಯೆ,
ಇವರ ಕಣ್ಣಿಗವರೂ ತರುಣ!

Harry-puraaNa

I am an unabashed fan of Harry Potter. Not so much of a fan (my priorities have, er... changed now) to leave aside all other things and keep reading till I finish the book, but enough of a fan to prebook, buy and read as soon as possible. The narration is tight, the stories riveting and the characters are immensely loveable.

Today I had lunch at a relative’s. A few of us were discussing excitedly about ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’. (No, I still have not finished it. I have been terribly busy these couple of weeks and let R read it first.) An Uncle, G, heard our conversation and said “You would not read with so much interest if ‘baalanaagamma’ or ‘paataalabhairavi’ were released, you want only a western Harry Potter”. A couple of other elders joined in. The youngsters’ voice of protest was drowned in the elders' complaints about how today's kids loved "foreign" books and foreign everything. All this stemming from an innocent discussion about Harry Potter.

Let me make one thing clear first. I am all for preservation of Indian culture. Nobody who knows me can say that I do not read Indian books. I am pretty well-informed about our puranic and vedic lore. And it really irritates me when some people, writers included, rant that the HP series is not good, just hyped by the media. G was of the opinion that the sole reason for the popularity of HP was because of the publicity by the media. I think that the media-hype will work for the first volume and probably even the second. Beyond that, it is solely the writer's capability and the books' quality that makes the book popular or not popular.

I think I have complained elsewhere in my blog, that kids hardly read these days. They are so full of video games and the TV, that reading books other than their textbooks is somewhere at the end of their list of love-to-do things. This is if reading does find a place at all, in such a list. In this scenario, the one series that has taken many kids and adults back to reading is the Harry Potter series. They have made reading 'cool'. The books, even if they can be read very easily, are well-thought out. And since they are pretty voluminous, I think they tend to make other big books less intimidating, in the long run.

True, we have other, better books even in India. But let us not grudge Rowling her well-deserved popularity. She has given us a wonderful series of books; let's enjoy them!

ಶಚೀಹತ

ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಒಂದು ಮೀಟಿಂಗಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಕುಳಿತಿದ್ದಾಗ, ಅಲ್ಲೇ ಮೇಜಿನ ಮೇಲಿದ್ದ ಮಾರ್ಕರ್ ಅನ್ನು ಕೈಗೆ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಂಡು ನೋಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದೆ. ಅದರ ಮೇಲೆ Shachihata ಎಂದು ಬರೆದಿತ್ತು. ಈ ಹೆಸರು ಜಪಾನೀಯ ಹೆಸರೆಂದು ಅನ್ನಿಸಿದರೂ, ನಮ್ಮ ಭಾಷೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಏನು ಅರ್ಥವನ್ನು ಕೊಡಬಹುದೆಂಬ ಯೋಚನೆ ಬಂದಿತು.

"ಶಚೀಹತ" ಎಂಬ ಸಮಾಸವನ್ನು ಎರಡು ರೀತಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿಡಿಸಬಹುದು. ಒಂದು ತೃತೀಯಾ ತತ್ಪುರುಷ-ಸಮಾಸ, 'ಶಚ್ಯಾ ಹತಃ' - ಶಚಿಯಿಂದ ಹತನಾದವನು ಎಂದು. ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಪಂಚಮೀ ತತ್ಪುರುಷಸಮಾಸ, "ಶಚ್ಯಾಃ ಹತಃ" - ಶಚಿಯ ಕಾರಣದಿಂದ ಹತನಾದವನು ಎಂದು. ಹತ ಎನ್ನುವುದಕ್ಕೆ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತದಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನಾ ಅರ್ಥಗಳಿವೆ. "ಹಾಳಾಗಿದ್ದು" ಎಂಬ ಅರ್ಥವೂ ಒಂದುಂಟು. ಮೊದಲನೆಯದಕ್ಕೆ, ಎಂದರೆ ಶಚಿಯಿಂದ ಹತನಾದವನ ಉದಾಹರಣೆ ನನಗೆ ಸಿಗಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ ಶಚಿಯ ಕಾರಣದಿಂದ ಹಾಳಾದವರು ದೊರೆತರು.

ವೇದಗಳ ಪ್ರಕಾರ ಇಂದ್ರ ಇಂದ್ರಿಯಗಳಿಗೆ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ. ಅವನ ಪತ್ನಿಯಾದ ಇಂದ್ರಾಣೀ ಅಥವಾ ಶಚೀ, ಇಂದ್ರಿಯವಸ್ತುಗಳಿಗೆ ಅಧಿದೇವತೆ. ಒಂದರ್ಥದಲ್ಲಿ "ಶಚೀಹತ" ಎಂದರೆ ಇಂದ್ರಿಯವಸ್ತುಗಳಿಂದ ಹಾಳಾದವರು ಎಂದು ಹೇಳಬಹುದಾದರೂ ಈ ಅರ್ಥ ನನಗೆ ಅಷ್ಟು ರುಚಿಸಲಿಲ್ಲ.

ಪುರಾಣಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಬರುವ ಒಂದು ಕಥೆ ಹೀಗಿದೆ. ವೃತ್ರಾಸುರನನ್ನು ಸಂಹರಿಸಿದ ಇಂದ್ರ ಆ ಪಾಪವನ್ನು ನಿವಾರಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು, ಹತ್ಯೆಯಿಂದ ತಪ್ಪಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಅಡಗಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಲೋಕವು ಅನಿಂದ್ರವಾಗುವುದನ್ನು ತಪ್ಪಿಸಲು ದೇವತೆಗಳು ಧರ್ಮಿಷ್ಠನಾದ ಮಹಾರಾಜ ನಹುಷನನ್ನು ಕರೆತಂದು ಇಂದ್ರನನ್ನಾಗಿ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಅಧಿಕಾರಮದದಿಂದ ನಹುಷ ಶಚಿಯನ್ನು ಬಯಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಪಲ್ಲಕ್ಕಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹೋಗುತ್ತಿರುವಾಗ ಬೇಗ ಹೋಗೆಂದು ಒಬ್ಬ ಋಷಿಯನ್ನು ಒದ್ದಾಗ ಕ್ರುದ್ಧನಾದ ಆ ಋಷಿ "ಅಜಗರನಾಗು" ಎಂದು ನಹುಷನನ್ನು ಶಪಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ನಹುಷ ಅಜಗರನಾಗಿ ಭೂಮಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬೀಳುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಮುಂದೆ ಊಟಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಭೀಮನನ್ನು ಹಿಡಿದು, ಯುಧಿಷ್ಠಿರ ಅವನನ್ನು ಬಿಡಿಸಿದಾಗ ಅವನಿಗೆ ಶಾಪವಿಮೋಚನೆಯಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. 'ಶಚೀಹತ' ಎಂಬುದು ನಹುಷನಿಗೆ ಅನ್ವರ್ಥನಾಮವಾಗುತ್ತದೆ.

ಇದೇ ಕಥೆಯನ್ನು ಹಿರಿಯ ಲೇಖಕರಾದ ಶ್ರೀ ದೇವುಡು ನರಸಿಂಹ ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರಿಗಳು 'ಮಹಾಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯ' ಎಂಬ ಸುಂದರ ಕೃತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಭಿನ್ನವಾಗಿ ಮೂಡಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ನಹುಷನೇ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಮಹಾಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯ. ವೇದಕಾಲದ ಇಂದ್ರನಿಗೆ ಸಲ್ಲಬೇಕಾದಷ್ಟು ಮರ್ಯಾದೆಯನ್ನು ಸಲ್ಲಿಸುತ್ತಲೇ, ಮಾನವನಾದ ನಹುಷನನ್ನೂ ಇಂದ್ರನಿಗೆ ಸಮಾನವಾಗಿ ಚಿತ್ರಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಸನ್ನಿವೇಶಗಳೇನೋ ಮೇಲೆ ಹೇಳಿದಂತೆಯೇ, ಆದರೆ ಪಾತ್ರಗಳ ಉದ್ದೇಶಗಳು ಮಾತ್ರ ಬೇರೆಯವು. ಇಲ್ಲಿ ನಹುಷ ಏಕಪತ್ನೀವ್ರತಸ್ಥ. ಇಂದ್ರ ಮರಳಿ ಬಂದಾಗ ನಹುಷನಂಥವನು ಇನ್ನು ನಮಗೆ ರಾಜನಾಗಿರುವುದಿಲ್ಲವಲ್ಲ ಎಂದು ದೇವತೆಗಳೂ ಮರುಗುವಷ್ಟು ದೊಡ್ಡ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿ ಅವನು. ಹಳೆಯ ಇಂದ್ರನಿಗೆ ಅಧಿಕಾರವನ್ನು ಮರಳಿಸುವ ಮುಂಚೆ ಅವನು ಮಾಡದ ಒಂದು ಕೆಲಸವನ್ನು ಮಾಡಬೇಕೆಂದು ಸಂಕಲ್ಪಿಸಿ ನಹುಷ 'ಸಪ್ತರ್ಷಿಶಿಬಿಕಾರೋಹಣ'ವನ್ನು ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಸಪ್ತರ್ಷಿಗಳು ಹೊತ್ತ ಶಿಬಿಕೆಯನ್ನು ಏರುವುದು 'ಸಪ್ತರ್ಷಿಶಿಬಿಕಾರೋಹಣ'. ಮಹಿಮಾನ್ವಿತವಾದ ಪಲ್ಲಕ್ಕಿಯಾದ್ದರಿಂದ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಕುಳಿತವರು ಸಮಾಧಿಸ್ಥರಾಗಿಯೇ ಇರಬೇಕು. ಸಮಾಧಿಯಿಂದ ಕದಲಿದರೆ ಭ್ರಷ್ಟನಾಗುವುದು ನಿಶ್ಚಿತ. ಮುಂದೆ ಹೀಗಾಗುವುದೆಂದು ತಿಳಿದಿದ್ದರೂ ನಹುಷನೇ ಶಿಬಿಕಾರೋಹಣವನ್ನು ಮಾಡಿ, ಶಾಪವನ್ನೂ ಸಮಚಿತ್ತನಾಗಿ ಧರಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ.

ನನಗೆ ಭಾಸ ತನ್ನ 'ಪಂಚರಾತ್ರ'ದಲ್ಲಿ ಮತ್ತು ರನ್ನ ತನ್ನ 'ಗದಾಯುದ್ಧ'ದಲ್ಲಿ ದುರ್ಯೊಧನನನ್ನು ಒಳ್ಳೆಯವನಂತೆ ಚಿತ್ರಿಸಿರುವುದು ಇಷ್ಟವಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ 'ಮಹಾಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯ'ದಲ್ಲಿ ನಹುಷನನ್ನು ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ಪಾತ್ರವನ್ನಾಗಿ ಚಿತ್ರಿಸಿರುವುದು ಬಹಳ ರುಚಿಸಿತು. ನನ್ನ ಪೂರ್ವಗ್ರಹಗಳೇ ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾರಣವಾದರೂ, ಕೇವಲ ಒಂದು ಕಾದಂಬರಿಯ ದೃಷ್ಟಿಯಿಂದ ನೋಡಿದರೂ 'ಮಹಾಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯ' ಒಂದು ಉತ್ತಮೋತ್ತಮವಾದ ಕೃತಿ.

ದೇವುಡು ಅವರ ಕಾದಂಬರಿಗಳ ಶೈಲಿ ಇತರರ ಶೈಲಿಗಿಂತ ಭಿನ್ನ. ಅವರ ಭಾಷೆ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತಭೂಯಿಷ್ಠವಾಗಿ, ಅರ್ಥಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಕಷ್ಟವೇ ಎಂದೆನ್ನಬಹುದು. ಅವರು ಹೇಳುವ ವಿಷಯದ ಬೋಧೆಯಾಗುವುದು ಇನ್ನೂ ಕಷ್ಟತರ (ನನ್ನ ಪತಿ ಹೇಳುವಂತೆ, ಅವರ ಕಾದಂಬರಿಯನ್ನು ಓದುವ ಬದಲು ಯಾವುದಾದರೂ ಉಪನಿಷತ್ತನ್ನೇ ಓದಬಹುದು!). ಆದರೆ ಅವರ ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನೂ, ವಿಷಯವನ್ನೂ ಅರ್ಥ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡರೆ ಆಗುವ ಆನಂದ, ಸಿಗುವ ತೃಪ್ತಿ ಮಾತ್ರ ಅನನ್ಯಸಾಧ್ಯ. ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿರುವ ಅನೇಕ ವಿಷಯಗಳು ಸಾಧನೆಯಿಂದ ಮತ್ತು ಅನುಭವದಿಂದ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಗೋಚರವಾದವು ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ನೆನೆದರೆ ರೋಮಾಂಚನವಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ವಸ್ತುಗಳನ್ನೂ ಸಂದರ್ಭಗಳನ್ನೂ ಕಣ್ಣಿಗೆ ಕಟ್ಟುವಂತೆ, ಅಲಂಕಾರಯುತವಾಗಿ ವರ್ಣನೆ ಮಾಡುವಲ್ಲಿ ಇನ್ನಾರೂ ದೇವುಡು ಅವರನ್ನು ಸರಿಗಟ್ಟಲಾರರು.

ದೇವುಡು ಅವರ ಇತರ ಪುಸ್ತಕಗಳು 'ಮಹಾಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣ' (ವಿಶ್ವಾಮಿತ್ರ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮರ್ಷಿಯಾದ ಕಥೆ), 'ಮಹಾದರ್ಶನ' (ಯಾಜ್ಞವಲ್ಕ್ಯರು ಶುಕ್ಲಯಜುರ್ವೇದವನ್ನು ಪಡೆದು 'ಸರ್ವಜ್ಞ'ನೆಂದು ಪುರಸ್ಕೃತರಾದ ಕಥೆ), ಮತ್ತು 'ಮಯೂರ' (ಮಯೂರವರ್ಮ ಪಲ್ಲವರನ್ನು ಸೋಲಿಸಿ ಕದಂಬರಾಜ್ಯಸ್ಥಾಪನೆಗೈದ ಕಥೆ - ಈ ಕಾದಂಬರಿಯನ್ನು ಚಿತ್ರೀಕರಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಚಿತ್ರಕ್ಕಿಂತ ಕಾದಂಬರಿ ಶತಕೋಟಿಶಃ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿದೆಯೆಂದು ನನ್ನ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯ). ಮೂರೂ ಉತ್ತಮವಾದ ಕಾದಂಬರಿಗಳೇ. ಈ ಪುಸ್ತಕಗಳನ್ನು ಓದಿ ಮುಗಿಸಿದಾಗ ಮನಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲುಳಿಯುವುದು ಶಾಂತಭಾವ.

ಒಂದು ಮಾರ್ಕರ್ ನ ದಯೆಯಿಂದ, ನನ್ನ ಮನಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲೂ ಈಗ ಇರುವುದು ಶಾಂತಭಾವ!

Corporate responsibility

I do not watch serials on TV, but recently I happened to watch a few minutes of the kannada serial 'Minchu', directed by T.N. Seetharam.

What was going on was this. X, the managing director of a company, has an assistant Y. Now, there is another person Z, who is in need of money for her daughter's wedding, and approaches the finance department of the company for assistance. Z has already taken a housing loan and is still repaying it. Because of that, the finance department agrees to loan only a small amount of money. Z approaches Y, who takes her case to the MD and convinces the MD to increase the loan amount.

Okay, this was just an instance in a TV serial. But it was directed by Seetharam, and we can be sure that he thought it out well, before bringing it on screen. No one can deny that a company is responsible for its employees. But there is only so much anybody can do for anybody else. Even when it is possible, it is not right to cross those limits. What if all the employees of the company (or even half of them, for that matter), ask for loans, for genuine reasons? What would X have done?

Being complacent that someone higher-up is going to bail one out of all difficulties is bad. Unfortunately, I guess that is how we humans are wired (I sometimes wonder if it is just an Indian trait!). Some people always expect that rich companies help mend the bad roads, help government-run schools, and generally donate money generously for all causes.

Recently, I read an article that I received by email, written by Ravi Belagere. It was an open letter to Sudha Murthy. I respect Ravi Belagere a lot for his views, but this article struck me as very odd. Apparently M.P. Prakash, our erstwhile Dy. Chief minister, told Ravi Belagere that he asked all the IT majors to donate money for the development of infrastructure and various other things, and apparently all of them replied that "they would get back on this issue", but have not gotten back since then.

That is not all. Belagere rants about how all flyovers are near the IT offices, how the rich IT companies do not care about the necessities of the farmer whose land was destroyed by floods and about poor children who do not have access to education, how Bangalore became so very costly because of the IT companies.

To an extent, what he says is true. There is too much immigration from other parts of India to Bangalore. Cost of living is escalating. Rents have touched an all-time high. The traffic-situation is abysmal. Rather than spend evenings quietly with books, the youth prefer to hang out at malls. Ask any highschool kid, he/she wants to be a software engineer and nothing else. It is like they do not have any rolemodel in any other field. Good teachers, scientists and the like are hardly to be found. These developments are not good.

But how wise is it to blame the IT industry for everything? Businesses are there because they are in demand. An IT company exists because there are sponsors and shareholders and customers. And people work for IT companies because they pay them enough money to give good education to their kids and build bigger houses. Even IT companies get tax subsidies from the government because they generate revenue and create more wealth. Engineering colleges hiked their fees because of the high salaries the students may get once they finish their education.

And it is not like the IT companies do not do anything for the society. At R's company, there was this quarterly event where each person of the team was paired with a kid from a nearby government school. At the end of the event, R gave him his phone number, and asked him to call if he needed any help. True, such events are few and far between, but that is a start, and a good one at that. RSS has a few orphanages and schools ('anaatha shishu nivaasa', 'aruna chetana', etc) that thrive on donations by 'Professionals in Seva'. The Infosys Foundation has also done a lot of social work.

As harsh as it may sound, companies are answerable to their shareholders, and that is how their policies are made. M.P Prakash cannot complain against global companies without plugging the corrupt holes in his own ministry.

ತುಂಟ ಕರಡಿ ತನ್ನ ತಮ್ಮನಿಗೆ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದು

ಚಿತ್ರಕವನ ದ ಒಂಭತ್ತನೆಯ ಚಿತ್ರಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಬರೆದ ಪದ್ಯ.

ಕಿಟಕಿಯ ಸರಳುಗಳಾಚೆಯ ಜಗವದು
ಎಷ್ಟು ಸುಂದರವು, ನೋಡಿದೆಯಾ?
ಚಿಗುರಿದ ಮರಗಳು, ಅರಳಿದ ಹೂಗಳು
ಕರೆದಿವೆ ನಮ್ಮನು, ಕೇಳಿದೆಯಾ?

ಮಾವಿನ ಮರದಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಜೇನನ್ನು
ಸವಿಯಲು ಸಹಚರನಾಗುವೆಯಾ?
ಹಲಸಿನ ಹಣ್ಣನು ಮೆಲ್ಲನೆ ಬಿಡಿಸುತ
ಮೆಲ್ಲಲು ನೀ ಜತೆಗೂಡುವೆಯಾ?

ನಿದ್ದೆಯ ಹೊತ್ತಲಿ ನೀರಲಾಡಿದ್ದು
ಅಮ್ಮಗೆ ನೀನೇ ಹೇಳಿದೆಯಾ?
ಪಕ್ಕದ ಹಳ್ಳಿಯ ಜನರ ಕೆಣಕಿದ್ದು
ಅವಳಿಗೆ ಕೋಪವ ತರಿಸಿದೆಯಾ?

ನಮ್ಮ ಚೇಷ್ಟೆಗಳು ಮೀರಿದವೇ ಮಿತಿ?
ಚಿಣ್ಣರ ಮೇಲೆಯೆ ಹಠ ಸರಿಯಾ?
ಕೂಡಿ ಹಾಕಿಹಳು ಅಮ್ಮನು ನಮ್ಮನು
ಏನ ಮಾಡುವುದು, ಯೋಚಿಸೆಯಾ?

'Complications' by Atul Gawande

Writing about books has two positive results and one negative. The positive results first. One -I never run out of subjects provided I keep on reading new books, and two - suppose I want to remind myself of this book, say a few years later, I can just read this review of mine. I have often felt the need for the latter. The negative result - I will be writing about things I have not experienced personally. Many of the ideas will not be my own. But I am willing to take that risk. Henceforth I plan to write about all the interesting books I read. I hope to intersperse the "book-review posts" with other subjects, but let that be for now.

The latest book I read, 'Complications' written by Atul Gawande, was very, very interesting, and it is an understatement. I have been interested in the medical field for as long as I remember. When I go to the doctor either as a patient or as the patient's relative, I am informed. I usually have a fair idea of the side effects of the medicines prescribed. However, after reading 'Complications', I realized how inadequate all that was. It was an epiphany. I trust a couple of doctors implicitly, and the fact that they too can be fallible, is scary, but true. The book talks about mistakes that even good doctors might make, and that wee bit of extra cautiousness that has often saved patients' lives.

Gawande writes with the clinical precision and detachment capable only of a surgeon. And yet there is humanity, there are the intense emotions that even doctors experience. There is not a dull chapter, or even a dull sentence in the book. It could be called delightful, if the subject were not so morbid and serious.

I remember freaking out when I went to the hospital at an unearthly hour and saw the young, inexperienced duty doctor instead of my usual gynecologist. One cannot deny that more experience makes better doctors. And age does matter. Most people I have met are more comfortable with old, experienced doctors than younger doctors with sophisticated degrees. Gawande states an instance where experience came in real handy. A patient came in with a reddened and swollen leg. All the indications were pointing toward cellulitis, a common but treatable infection. But just weeks ago, Gawande had lost one of his patients to necrotizing fasciitis, a rare and fatal bacterial infection that can be treated surgically, only in the very initial stage. (These bacteria, usually strains of streptococcus A, can enter the body through a "wound" as small as a pinprick.) His experience made him order a biopsy and his fears were indeed true. The patient had most of the tissue removed from her leg, but she survived. What would have happened to her if the doctor did not have this kind of an experience earlier? Would the warning bells have sounded even then? It is really hard to say!

There is also this matter of statistics. Cellulitis is a common infection. And about 5% of the cases, thought to be cellulitis at first, turn out to be necrotizing faciitis. Does this help the doctor make a decision on whether the patient in front of him right then has one or the other? Can a good doctor assume that exactly 5 out of a hundred cellulitis-patients that see him have the flesh-eating bacteria? No! Statistics are there to just comfort and/or caution, but they can never be used as a guideline.

From the days of Hippocrates and our own Sushruta, Medical Science has been improving. But newer technology has its own costs. I remember feeling elated when I read about "laparoscopic cholesystectomy" in my high school days. I thought of all the lives that would be saved because of the new technology. The thought that never came to me till I read "Complications" was the learning curve of the doctors. Gawande describes a laparoscopic cholesystectomy (the removal of the gall bladder) that he performed. Only after reading that did I realize how complicated it was, how difficult it was to learn new techniques. Doctors, like all others, take time to learn. But unlike us engineers, their experiments are with life; the stakes are high. One mistake, just half a second of haziness while wielding the scalpel can kill. Okay, I may be exaggerating, but the point is that doctors are responsible for the most precious things in this world.

And they deserve that responsibility. Risks have to be taken if lives are to be saved. Gawande talks about an unusual surgery, the gastric bypass surgery. (There was a report about this surgery in this week's 'Health' supplement of the Indian Express). In this surgery, the stomach is stapled, thereby reducing its size, and about a metre of the small intestine is bypassed, so that less food is absorbed. This is the best cure now available for morbid obesity. I mean, just think of the capability of one four-hour surgery! Many people are leading healthy and happy lives because of the surgery. So, at some point, a decision has to be made. For doctors, however, difficult decisions have to be made all the time.

In the Indian tradition, we say that one should trust the doctor completely. Indeed, it is said that the result is proportional to our trust. From a psychological perspective, this makes complete sense. Though *all* our illnesses are not rooted in the mind, many of them are. Therefore, trusting the doctor is important. But how far do we go? Ultimately it is our own body we are talking about. In Kannada they say 'ಹೊಸ ವೈದ್ಯರಿಗಿಂತ ಹಳೆ ರೋಗಿಯೇ ಮೇಲು', which is true to some extent (My grandma used to do this. She had diabetes, and whenever she ate an extra sweet, she would take a little more of her diabetes medication, without consulting the doctor!). There should be a sort of a compromise between the doctor and the patient as to who listens to whom, to what extent.

'Complications' got me started on thinking about a related thing. There are happy endings and sad endings. But, isn't 'Life' mysterious? A person who has four heart attacks may survive and thrive, whereas another may die of a pinprick. A pacemaker can help an ailing heart, a ventilator can substitute the lungs and a dialysis machine, the kidneys. What is the nature of that "one thing" that keeps all these and more working together in so much harmony that if one organ fails, all the others gradually fail, too. I am delving into Philosophy here, but isn't that a question worth considering?

The story of King Kusha

Love is wonderful. No, I am not moonstruck, but pondering as usual. The thing is, I was cleaning up some stuff, and happened to see the Amar Chitra Katha comic version of the story of King Kusha. The story triggered some thoughts, and here I am.

For people not in the know, here is the story. It is taken from the Jataka tales. King Okkaka was heirless. Indra granted him two sons as a boon, one wise but ugly and the other handsome but foolish. Sheelavati, the queen asked for the wise one to be born first, and so King Kusha was born. Later, Jayampati, the beautiful child, was born.

Kusha finished his learning quite soon. When his parents asked him to get married, he thought that no princess would agree to get married to a ugly youth like him, and hit upon a ruse to ward off the impending proposals and refusals. He carved a beautiful image of a woman, and asked his parents to find somebody who looked exactly like her. He was confident that they would not be able to find a woman as beautiful as his carving. But he was mistaken. Padmavati, the daughter of Sagala was found and married to Kusha on one condition - the new couple were not to see each other for some time. Padmavati loved to hear him play the veena, and imagined that he had an artist's handsome face.

Kusha could not hide his face long from Padmavati. As soon as she found out that her husband was not the handsome prince she had hoped for, she left for her parents' house. Thither followed Kusha. He became a potter's apprentice, made a beautiful pot with Padmavati's picture on it, and sent it to her. She recognized his work and threw the pot away. He then became the royal wicker-worker's apprentice and sent his work to her, but she rejected that too. He then became a cook at the palace, with the hope that he could at least see her often. She was unrelenting, but Kusha toiled in the royal kitchen, waiting for her to accept him.

Finally, Indra decided to help him. He sent a message to seven different kings in Sagala's name, saying that since his daughter (hey, Indra was a great forger!) had left Kusha, he would marry her off to them. Seven kings with seven armies came to Madda (that was the kingdom of Padmavati). Padmavati's father was now alarmed. Giving Padmavati to any one king would mean war with the other six, and he was just not prepared for it. Padmavati now saw the situation she was in, and appealed to Kusha to help her. Kusha settled matters by offering his seven sisters-in-law to the seven kings. Kusha and Padmavati lived happily ever after.

Now, that was the story. I have a question. I am sure some women, in their vanity, do not consider not-so-good-looking men as worthy of companionship, in spite of their other virtues. But would any man do so much for a woman who has scorned him repeatedly? I have read of men and women who do anything and everything to get to their loved ones back. Rama fought the entire army of Ravana to win Seeta back. In Kalidasa's drama, vikramorvasheeyam, Pururava performed penance for winning Urvashi. One can find umpteen instances like that in other cultures also. In Greek mythology, we have the search for Cupid by Psyche and the pining of Penelope for Ulysses. But in all such stories there is this one common thing - of mutual love that is nourished by longing and even by separation.

Well, I do not want to dissect the story any further and play spoilsport. Do let me know if you liked it :)

Of Poverty, Perseverance and Dharavi

It is not uncommon to see people seeking alms in Bangalore. Today, while coming to work, I saw a woman with a child in her arms, begging at a traffic signal. It was not a pretty sight. The baby, probably about six months old, was blissfully asleep in its mother's arms. I usually do not give money as alms, but this time I gave what small change I had, knowing well that what I gave was not sufficient even for one meal of the baby.

Did the Mother have a choice? I tried to give her the benefit of doubt. Hers was probably a genuine case. She was probably not skilled in anything, and had the burden of the child to bear. But I have this feeling that there are always jobs available for the industrious and those who really want to work to make ends meet. Why, then, do people resort to begging? I am inclined to think that it is the "man-with-the-twisted-lip -syndrome", as harsh and insensitive as it may sound.

There was a time when 'ಕರತಲಭಿಕ್ಷಾ ತರುತಲವಾಸ:' was regarded highly, when poverty in terms of food, clothes and money was almost synonymous with the richness of the mind and intellect. But this is not that kind of a time. If one is reasonably intelligent and industrious, he/she can find a job (much better than begging), that might fetch enough to ward away hunger. In the olden days, one-sixth of honestly-earned money was supposed to be given off as charity. True, giving money away as charity is good for the giver, but does it not make one section of the society totally dependent on the favors of another? Won't that breed class distinction and class-wars?

I contrasted my experience with this article on Sepia Mutiny, about the Dharavi slum. I had read about the Dharavi slum a couple of years ago in the Kannada magazine, Taranga. And the picture I got from that was that of a dirty slum filled with frustrated people, as one sees in some movies. But this article was a real eye-opener for me. The slum is dirty alright, but the people are industrious, and becoming prosperous. The reason for this is their enthusiasm and spirit, that enable them to fight against all odds.

Apparently there are more than five-thousand one-room factories and many cottage industries in the two sq. km. area of Dharavi, whose collective annual turnover is a whopping 1 billion dollars! If that is not amazing, I don't know what is! Apparently they still do not pay taxes properly, but let us not think about it for now. 85% of the households have a television and 56% have a gas stove... A funny thing, as an aside - do 29% of the slum-dwellers think that the TV is more necessary than a gas stove? Oh, and 21% of the people own telephones. A really good number for a shantytown!

I can give other examples too. A lady used to work as a domestic help in my Grandmother's house. She worked in a few houses everyday for a few years and got her children (two boys), educated. Both of them did their B.E. The younger one lived in Canada for some time and made a lot of money. Now they all live in their own, big house with cars and other luxuries. One can say that Lady Luck was on their side, that the sons were intelligent and all that, but would they have become so successful if they did not have that strong desire to succeed, and if they had not worked so hard? To reiterate a point I feel very strongly about - if one really wants something (and perseveres), the whole universe will conspire in helping him achieve it.

The work-hard-and-sell-hard concept worked for the residents of Dharavi. Will it work for this woman and her child I met? And so many other men, women and children who have to beg for their living? Or rather, will they let it work for them? I fervently hope so, in spite of having a man like this at the helm.

'The Alchemist' By Paulo Coelho

Just today, I finished reading 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho. The book has garnered a lot of praise from all over the world as life-changing and illuminating. I partly bought the book because I wanted some illumination, and partly to see if it really deserved so much praise. After reading it, I must say that I did find that the praise was well-deserved, and that it was really a book that I could learn from.

'The Alchemist' is the story of Santiago, a shepherd and his quest for a treasure he dreamt about. The book is about following one's dreams, both literally and figuratively. The alchemist guides the boy towards the realization of his dream, and teaches him quite a few things on the way, the most important lessons being perseverance and faith (reminds me of shraddha and saburi).

When I started reading through the book, I was unimpressed. There were, of course, precious nuggets thrown about liberally even from the beginning, the most memorable one for me being "When you really want something, the whole universe conspires in helping you achieve it". But the story itself seemed a bit weird. It felt like of those stories which seem to happen in another dimension altogether, much like Voltaire's "Princess of Babylon". And at times, I felt that I was reading a cross of Stephen Covey and Kahlil Gibran. But gradually, as I read on, I was appreciating the book more and more. I could see myself looking at the sand in the vast expanse of the desert, feeling the wind whisper to me about my dreams.

The boy's name is mentioned only once in the entire novel. Except for that one time, he is always referred to as "the boy". I think that that was because Coelho wanted to make it everybody's book. We are all like the boy; we dream of treasures. But we are not as daring, in that we are content with just dreaming and doing nothing about it. And though Santiago was more a youth than a boy, he is referred to as the boy because he was willing to be guided, without any hesitation. Though he had the help of the decision-making stones, he made his own decisions. This combination of two qualities - the eagerness to be taught and the ability to make decisions, was the reason for the boy's success.

As I do often, I could not help comparing the world-view of Coelho with that of Vedanta. More than once, it struck me that the "Soul of the World" was parabrahma, from where everything originates and to which everything goes in the end. Though Coelho is a practising Catholic, his thoughts about the "Soul of the World" appear distinctly advaitic in nature, when he says "he realized that his Soul was the Soul of the world". Most of his insights seem to stem from his own experiences. In his twenties, Coelho encountered a stranger who first appeared to him in a vision, and then in real life. This had a powerful effect on him, and he then wrote 'The Alchemist', which has a profound effect on us.

There is one very insightful story in the book that I really liked. A boy once went to a wise man to learn the secret of happiness. The wise man gave him a spoon with two drops of oil, and asked him to look around his beautiful castle. When the boy returned, he asked him whether he saw how beautiful his castle was. The boy replied that he could not, because he did not want to spill the oil in the spoon. The wise man asked him to go again and admire the castle and its grounds. The boy did what he was told, and came back, full of admiration for the beauty of the castle. But now, he was so engrossed in looking outside, that the oil was gone! The wise man then told him "The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon". I liked this concept very much. It is the middle-path that is always the best. I am reminded of DVG's poem, one of my favorites.

ಎದೆ ಮಾರುವೋಗದೊಡೆ ಕಣ್ ಸೊಬಗನುಂಡರೇಂ
ಹೃದಯ ಮುಯ್ ಕೇಳದೊಡೆ ನಲಿವ ಸೂಸಿದರೇಂ |
ಕದಡದಿರ್ದೊಡೆ ಮನವ, ತನು ಸೊಗವ ಸವಿದರೇಂ
ಮುದ ತಾನೆ ತಪ್ಪಲ್ಲ ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮ ||

For people who care to learn something from the book, it gives one that much-needed gentle nudge towards one's goals. And the hope that even if we make mistakes searching for our guide like the boy did initially, we will find our alchemist waiting for us somewhere...

ಋಜುವಾದ ಮಾತು

ಈಚೆಗೆ ಸುದ್ದಿ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿರುವ ವಿಷಯ 'ಆವರಣ'ದ ಮತ್ತು ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಯು. ಆರ್. ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರು ಮಾಡಿದ ಟೀಕೆ. ಯು.ಆರ್‍.ಏ ಅವರು ಮೊದಲು ಮಾಡಿದ ಟೀಕೆಗೆ ಸ್ಪಂದಿಸಿದ ಅನೇಕಜನ ವಿವಿಧಾಭಿಪ್ರಾಯಗಳನ್ನು ವ್ಯಕ್ತಪಡಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ವಿಜಯಕರ್ಣಾಟಕವನ್ನೂ, ಕೆಲವು ಸುಹೃದರ ಬ್ಲಾಗ್ ಗಳನ್ನೂ ಓದುವ ನನಗೆ ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಪರವಾಗಿಯೇ ಇಲ್ಲಿನ ಸ್ಪಂದನಗಳು ಇದ್ದದ್ದು ಅಚ್ಚರಿ ತರಿಸಲಿಲ್ಲ. ನನ್ನ ನಿಲುವೂ ಕೂಡ ಸುಮಾರು ಹಾಗೇ ಇದೆ.

ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರ ಭಾಷೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ನನಗೆ ಮೊದಲಿನಿಂದಲೂ ಮೆಚ್ಚುಗೆ-ಗೌರವಗಳಿವೆ. ಬಹಳ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಬರೆಯುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಆದರೆ ಒಳಹೊಕ್ಕು ನೋಡಿದರೆ ಅವರದು ಸತ್ತ್ವವೇ ಇಲ್ಲದ ಬರವಣಿಗೆ. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾರಣ ಅವರ ಪೂರ್ವಗ್ರಹಗಳು. ಅವರ ಪುಸ್ತಕಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನೈಜತೆ ಕಾಣಸಿಗದು. ಒಂದು ಕಥೆಯನ್ನು ಹೇಳುವಾಗ, ಅದು ಪಾತ್ರಗಳ ಕಥೆಯಾಗಿರಬೇಕು. ಪಾತ್ರಗಳು ಲೇಖಕನ ಸೃಷ್ಟಿಯಾಗಿದ್ದರೂ ಅವರ ಕ್ರಿಯೆ-ಭಾವ-ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯಗಳು ಲೇಖಕನವಲ್ಲದೆ ಅವುಗಳದೇ ಆದರೆ ಅಂಥ ಕಥೆ ನೈಜ ಎನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ. ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರ ಬರೆಹಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ಗುಣ ನನಗೆ ಕಾಣಲಿಲ್ಲ. ತಮಾಷೆಯೆಂದರೆ ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರು ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರನ್ನು ಈ ವಿಷಯವಾಗಿ ಟೀಕಿಸಿರುವುದು!

ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಪುಸ್ತಕಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕವಿತ್ವದ ಆರ್ದ್ರತೆ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎಂದು ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರು ಹೇಳುವುದನ್ನು ಒಪ್ಪುತ್ತೇನೆ. ಅವರ ಭಾಷೆ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಗ್ರಾಮ್ಯ. ಆದರೆ ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಬರೆಹಗಳು (ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರೂ ಒಪ್ಪುವಂತೆ) ಅದು ಹೇಗೆ ಅಷ್ಟು ಜನಪ್ರಿಯವಾದವು? ಒಂದಂತೂ ನಿಜ. ಸತ್ತ್ವಹೀನಕೃತಿಗಳು ಒಮ್ಮೊಮ್ಮೆ ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧವಾಗಬಹುದಾದರೂ ಸರ್ವಕಾಲದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಒಂದು ಕೃತಿ ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧವಾಗಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಅಂತಃಸತ್ತ್ವ, ವಿಚಾರಶೀಲತೆ ಮತ್ತು ಪ್ರಾಮಾಣಿಕತೆಗಳು ಇರಬೇಕು. ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಕೃತಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ಗುಣಗಳಿರುವುದರಿಂದ ಅವರ ಕೃತಿಗಳು ಅಷ್ಟು ಜನಪ್ರೀತಿಯನ್ನು ಗಳಿಸಿವೆ. ಕೆಲವರು ಆರೋಪಿಸಿರುವಂತೆ ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರು ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠತೆಯನ್ನು ಪ್ರತಿಪಾದಿಸುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ಹಾಗೆ ನೋಡಲು ಹೋದರೆ ಅವರು ಯಾವ ವಿಷಯವನ್ನೂ ಪ್ರತಿಪಾದಿಸುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾತ್ರ ನಮ್ಮ ಮುಂದಿಟ್ಟು ಉತ್ತರದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ನಾವೇ ಯೋಚನೆ ಮಾಡುವಂತೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಇದು ಉತ್ತಮಲೇಖಕನ ಗುರುತು. ಉದಾಹರಣೆಗೆ, 'ದಾಟು' ವಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಅಂತರ್ಜಾತೀಯ ವಿವಾಹಗಳ ಬೇರೆಬೇರೆ ವಿಧಗಳನ್ನು, ಬೇರೆಬೇರೆ ಜಾತಿಯವರಿಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಜಾತಿಯ ಮತ್ತು ಅನ್ಯಜಾತಿಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಇರುವ ಭಾವನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಕಥೆಯ ಹಂದರದಲ್ಲಿ ಹೆಣೆದು, ಈ ವಿಷಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಪ್ರಚೋದಿಸುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಉತ್ತರಗಳನ್ನು ಕಂಡುಹಿಡಿಯುವುದು ಅವರವರಿಗೆ ಬಿಟ್ಟಿದ್ದು!

ಹಾಗೆ ನೋಡಿದರೆ ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ನಿಲುವು ಹೀಗೆಯೇ ಎಂದು ನಿಖರವಾಗಿ ಹೇಳಬಲ್ಲ ಪುಸ್ತಕ 'ಆವರಣ'. ಸಾಹಿತ್ಯದೃಷ್ಟ್ಯಾ ಇದು ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಉತ್ತಮಕೃತಿಯೆಂದು ಖಂಡಿತ ಹೇಳಲಾಗದು. ಆದರೆ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ವಿವರಿಸಿರುವ ವಿಚಾರಗಳು ನಮ್ಮ ಇಂದಿನ "ಸೆಕ್ಯುಲರ್" ಜನತೆಗೆ ಅಗತ್ಯವಾಗಿ ತಿಳಿಹೇಳಬೇಕಾದವು. ಸತ್ಯದ ಸಮಾಧಿಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಸುಳ್ಳಿನ ಗೋಪುರವನ್ನು ಕಟ್ಟಲು ಹೊರಟಿರುವವರು ನಮ್ಮ ಇಂದಿನ ವಾಮಪಂಥೀಯರು. ಆಗಿರುವ ದುರಂತಗಳನ್ನು, ಹತ್ಯಾಕಾಂಡಗಳನ್ನು "ಆಗಲಿಲ್ಲ" ಎಂದೂ, ಆಗದ ಆಕ್ರಮಣಗಳನ್ನು "ಆಗಿದೆ" ಎಂದೂ ಸಾರುತ್ತಿರುವ, ಅದನ್ನೇ ನಂಬಿರುವ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಗಳು. ಒಂದು ಕೋಮಿನವರ ಮನಸ್ಸಂತೋಷಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಕೋಮಿನವರನ್ನು ತುಳಿಯುವ ಮನಸ್ಸುಳ್ಳವರು. ಹಿಂದೂ-ಮುಸ್ಲಿಮರ ಸ್ನೇಹ ಭಾರತೀಯರಾದ ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಬೇಕಾದುದು. ಈ ಸ್ನೇಹ ಸತ್ಯದ ಬುನಾದಿಯ ಮೇಲೆ ನಿಲ್ಲಬೇಕೆಂಬುದು ಭೈರಪ್ಪನವರ ಮತ. ಹೌದು, ಇಸ್ಲಾಂ ಭಾರತದಲ್ಲಿರುವಷ್ಟು ಬೇರೆಲ್ಲೂ ವರ್ಣರಂಜಿತವಾಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ ಇನ್ನೂ ಮುಸ್ಲಿಮರಲ್ಲಿ ಬಹುಪತ್ನೀತ್ವ, ಮೂರು ಬಾರಿ ಹೇಳುವ ತಲಾಕ್ ಜಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿದೆ. Uniform Civil Code ನ ಕನಸು ಕನಸಾಗಿಯೇ ಉಳಿದಿದೆ. ನಮ್ಮ ವಾಮಪಂಥೀಯರಿಗೋ ಇದು ಹೀಗೆಯೇ ಉಳಿಯಲಿ ಎಂದು. ಕಾಲಕ್ಕನುಗುಣವಾಗಿ ಮುಸ್ಲಿಮರೂ ಬದಲಾಗುವುದು ಬೇಡವೇ? ಹೌದು, ಕಬೀರ್, ಶಿರ್ಡಿಯ ಸಾಯಿಬಾಬಾ ಮುಂತಾದ ಕಾರಣಜನ್ಮರ ಜನ್ಮ ಮತ್ತು ವೃದ್ಧಿ ಇಂತಹುದೇ ಪರಿಸ್ಥಿತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಆಯಿತು. ಆದರೆ ಇದನ್ನೇ ಮುಂದಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು "ಮೊಗಲರ ಆಳ್ವಿಕೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹಿಂದೂಗಳು ಎಂದಿಗಿಂತ ಸಂತೋಷವಾಗಿದ್ದರು" ಎಂದು ಹೇಳಿದರೆ ಅದನ್ನು ಒಪ್ಪಲಾಗುತ್ತದೆಯೇ? ಔರಂಗಜೇಬ ಜೆಸಿಯಾ ವಿಧಿಸಿದ್ದು ಸುಳ್ಳಾಗುತ್ತದೆಯೇ?

ಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರು ತಮ್ಮೂರಿನ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನಗಳನ್ನೆಲ್ಲವನ್ನೂ ಜೀರ್ಣೋದ್ಧಾರ ಮಾಡಿಸಿದ್ದು ಮಿರ್ಜಾ ಇಸ್ಮಾಯಿಲ್ ಸಾಹೇಬರು ಎಂದು ಮಾತಿನ ಮಧ್ಯೆ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ನಾನು ಇನ್ನೂ ಬಹಳಷ್ಟು ಉದಾಹರಣೆಗಳನ್ನು ಕೊಡಬಲ್ಲೆ. ಬಿ ಆರ್ ಚೋಪ್ರಾ ರವರ "ಮಹಾಭಾರತ್" ಧಾರಾವಾಹಿಯ ಸ್ಕ್ರಿಪ್ಟ್ ಬರೆದದ್ದು ರಾಹಿ ಮಾಸೂಮ್ ರಾಜಾ. ಹಿಂದಿಯ "ಬೈಜು ಬಾವ್ರಾ" ಚಿತ್ರದ 'ಮನ್ ತರ್‌ಪತ್ ಹರಿ ದರ್‌ಶನ್ ಕೋ ಆಜ್' ಗೀತೆಯನ್ನು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದು ಶಕೀಲ್ ಬದಾಯುನಿ, ಸಂಗೀತ ನಿರ್ದೇಶಕ ನೌಷಾದ್ ಮತ್ತು ಹಾಡಿದ್ದು ಮೊಹಮ್ಮದ್ ರಫಿ. ಆದರೆ ಇವರೆಲ್ಲರನ್ನೂ ಔರಂಗಜೇಬನನ್ನೂ ಹೋಲಿಸುವುದು ridiculous. ಭಾರತೀಯಮುಸಲ್ಮಾನರನೇಕರನ್ನು ನಾವು ನಮ್ಮವರೆಂದು ಕಂಡುಕೊಂಡಿರುವಂತೆಯೇ, ಹಾಗಿಲ್ಲದವರ ವರ್ತನೆಯನ್ನು (ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಗಳನ್ನಲ್ಲ) ಖಂಡಿಸಬೇಕು. ಈ ದುಷ್ಕೃತ್ಯಗಳು ಹಿಂದೆ ಆಗಿವೆ ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ಒಪ್ಪಿಕೊಳ್ಳಬೇಕು. ಆಗಲೇ ಸುಭದ್ರಸಮಾಜದ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣ ಸಾಧ್ಯ. ಹೀಗೆ ಆಗಬಾರದು ಎಂದು ಹೇಳುವವರಿಗೆ ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ ಜವಾಬ್ದಾರಿ ಇಲ್ಲವೆಂದೇ ಹೇಳಬೇಕಾಗುತ್ತದೆ.

ಅನಂತಮೂರ್ತಿಯವರು ಮ್ಯಾಕ್‌ಬೆತ್ ಅನ್ನು ಷೇಕ್ಸ್‌ಪಿಯರ್ ನೋಡಿರುವ ರೀತಿಯನ್ನು ಉದಾಹರಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. (ತನ್ಮೂಲಕ ಔರಂಗಜೇಬನನ್ನೂ ಮನುಷ್ಯನನ್ನಾಗಿ ನೋಡುವ ತಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಆ ಮಹಾಕವಿಯ ಜೊತೆ ಹೋಲಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ!) ಷೇಕ್ಸ್‌ಪಿಯರ್ ಮ್ಯಾಕ್‌ಬೆತ್ ನನ್ನು ಮನುಷ್ಯನನ್ನಾಗಿ ನೋಡಿದರೂ ಅವನು ಮಾಡಿದ ಕೊಲೆಯನ್ನು ಮರೆಮಾಚಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ ಆವರಣದ ಬಹುತೇಕ ಟೀಕಾಕಾರರು ಔರಂಗಜೇಬ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನಗಳನ್ನು ನಾಶ ಪಡಿಸಲಿಲ್ಲವೆಂಬುದನ್ನೇ ಒರಲುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಅಥವಾ ನಾಶಪಡಿಸಿದುದನ್ನು ಈಗೇಕೆ ಹೇಳಬೇಕು ಎಂದು ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ. ತದ್ವಿರುದ್ಧವಾಗಿರುವ ಜರ್ಮನರ ವರ್ತನೆಯನ್ನು ನೋಡಿ. ನಾಜಿಗಳು ಯಹೂದ್ಯರ ಮೇಲೆ ನಡೆಸಿದ ಹತ್ಯಾಕಾಂಡವನ್ನು ಜರ್ಮನರುಎಂದೂ ಮರೆಮಾಚಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಹಾಗಾಗಿ ಅವರವರಲ್ಲಿ ಇಂದು ಶಾಂತಿಯಿದೆ. ಆದರೆ ಭಾರತದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾಗೆ ಆಗಲಿಲ್ಲವಾದ್ದರಿಂದ ಹಿಂದೂ-ಮುಸ್ಲಿಮರ ನಡುವೆ ಇರಬೇಕಾದಷ್ಟು ಸೌಹಾರ್ದ ಇಲ್ಲವಾಗಿದೆ. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾರಣ ಯಾರು?

ಗುಪ್ತರಾಗಲಿ ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರಕೂಟರಾಗಲಿ ರಜಪೂತರಾಗಲಿ ಮೊಗಲರಾಗಲಿ ಮರಾಠರಾಗಲಿ, ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಸಾಮ್ರಾಜ್ಯಗಳನ್ನು ಕಟ್ಟಿ ಬೆಳೆಸಿದವರು. ಅವರೆಲ್ಲರಲ್ಲಿ ಗುಣಗಳಿದ್ದಂತೆ ಅವಗುಣಗಳೂ ಇದ್ದವು. ನಾವು ಗುಣಗಳನ್ನು ಒಪ್ಪಿಕೊಂಡಂತೆಯೇ ಅವಗುಣಗಳನ್ನೂ ಒಪ್ಪಿಕೊಳ್ಳಬೇಕು. ಇಲ್ಲದಿದ್ದರೆ ಚರಿತ್ರೆಯ ಮೂಲ ಉದ್ದೇಶಕ್ಕೇ ಕೊಡಲಿಯೇಟು ಬೀಳುತ್ತದೆ. ಹೊಸ ಚಿಗುರು ಹಳೆಯ ಬೇರಿನಿಂದಲೇ ಬರುವುದು. ಬೇರು ಸುಳ್ಳಿನದಾದರೆ ಗಿಡವೂ ಸುಳ್ಳೇ ಅಲ್ಲವೆ?

What a man!

There are few people who deserve the above exclamation, and Sir C.V. Raman is one among them. I just finished reading "Raman and his Effect" by Dr. G. Venkataraman, and it has left me dazzled by one of the most brilliant gems India has produced. I knew next to nothing about Sir C.V before I read this book. I knew that he was a great scientist, knew about his work on acoustics and a little about the Raman effect. What I did not know about the man was his ego, his passion for Science, his love for India, his admiration for roses and minerals and diamonds, and his ego...

Raman is most celebrated for the discovery of the Raman effect . The story of its discovery is interesting. On his way back from his first ever trip abroad, Raman saw the blueness of the Mediterranean sea and wondered why it was. At that time, it was thought that the sea reflected the sky, and the particles in the sea-water absorbed light themselves. The accepted theory was that together, they gave large water bodies their characteristic blue color. But now, Raman had his own doubts. He always carried useful instruments with him, and he made some experiments right there, on the steamer. He then concluded that the water molecules were scattering the light incident upon them. During scattering, the frequency of the light altered, giving rise to the blue colour of the ocean. Raman Effect was thus discovered, and now has its applications in optical communication and analysis of materials, among others.

Perhaps lesser known is the work Raman did on Acoustics. He discovered how the mridangam and the tabla could generate actual musical notes, unlike other drums. He poured fine sand on the instruments immediately after striking them, and by observing the patterns formed by the grains, made fascinating discoveries about the harmonic nature of sounds produced by these instruments.

As a scientist, Raman had to be content with the less-than-adequate amenities he was provided. He was a true engineer. When there were no electric lights in the institute, he used sunlight for his optical experiments. That was Raman, never daunted by mundane, practically un-solvable problems such as poor infrastructure. His solution was simple - supplement the lack of infrastructure with the brilliance of the mind!

Raman's ego was proportional to his brilliance as a scientist. This mammoth-sized-ego was probably justified, probably, because he really was one of the best physicists of the time... After successfully completing the interview for the Assistant Account General's position at Calcutta, Raman said -"I took one look at all the candidates there and knew that I was going to stand first", and indeed he did. And what can you say about the confidence, nay, ego of the man who reserved steamer tickets to Europe in July for the Nobel awarding ceremony, even though they were only going to be announced in November!

There are a few other interesting anecdotes in the book, a couple of which I would like to share. A small boy once asked Raman if he was not ashamed of his turban, while travelling abroad. Raman then related this experience of his. When in London, he attended a lecture of Ernest Rutherford's. He happened to reach the place a little late, and was looking for a seat in the benches at the back. Rutherford then addressed him by his name, and invited him to come and sit in the front. He had recognized Raman because of the Madrasi turban! How could he be ashamed of his turban when it had served as a mark of identification? Another anecdote goes thus. While at IISc, Raman gave a problem in Spectroscopy to his student. The next day, he found the student sitting dejected. When asked why, the student replied "Another person is working on the same problem at UK. He has a 100 kW light, whereas I have only a 10 kW light". To this, Raman retorted "It does not matter, put a 100 kW brain on it!". Simple, ain't it?

In addition to being a great scientist, Sir C.V was also appreciative of Nature's beauty and bounty. He loved to collect diamonds and other crystals (in keeping with his passion for
optics). He grew a variety of flowers both at home and at Raman Research Institute. He states "I regard as the greatest feature of the world Nature herself. She is the supreme artist; she creates forms of beauty, loveliness and color, unsurpassable..."

I hope I have given at least a snippet (however small it may be), of the man who was perhaps as wonderful a person as he was a scientist, inspiring respect and awe in millions of seekers of knowledge. As I am writing this, my head bows in reverence to his great intellect. Little wonder that we celebrate February 28th as the National Science day. That was the day when Raman announced his Raman Effect to the world.

A note about the book itself. This book is one of a series, 'Vignettes in Physics', written by Dr.G. Venkataraman. The author received the Padmashri for the popularization of Science. 'Vignettes in Physics' satiates the curiosity of the ordinary reader and arouses interest in those serious about Physics. The author fondly calls it the "Junior Feynman series". Though this is the first book in this series that I have read seriously, I feel that it is excellent for people like me - who really want to delve deeper into Physics but do not have the time to study the Feynman lectures. Other books in this series are about the Chandrasekhar limit (Note: Raman was Chandrasekhar's uncle), QED, Bhabha, Saha, Quantum theory, etc. I am quite sure that each and every one of them will be an interesting read.

Atonement by Ian McEwan

This past couple of weeks, I have really been pondering about wars. I happened to read Ian McEwan's novel, "Atonement", and it put into perspective wars, big and small. Till now, I have felt sorry for most of the wars I have read about, in a sort of distant way - the world wars, the Civil war and their aftermaths. Even the Indian war of independence, for all the patriotic feelings it generated in me was - well, just a statistic. What mattered was who lost and who won, and how many people were killed. This book changed the statistics to something very personal. Each person who died in all these cataclysms was some body's husband or wife, lover, sibling or parent. To an extent, the movies "Life is Beautiful" and "Border" try to do it too, but "Atonement" is in a class by itself.

Atonement is the story of Briony, a thirteen-year old girl in 1935. How her precocious imagination brings about a crime, and how she atones for it, is the backbone of the novel. The story itself is simple. What makes the novel so very enjoyable is the lyrical words used by McEwan. He has a great gift for words, and is capable of painting pictures with his pen. Pictures so real that we are transported to a different time and place, and made to feel the characters' emotions as our own. Another great point about Atonement is its naturalness. All events happen one after the other in natural succession. We do not see McEwan thrusting his ideas upon any of the characters, though they are the products of his imagination. We always feel that the characters speak and act of their own accord, not because McEwan wills it.

Perhaps what impressed me most in the novel, was the description of WWII. Robbie Turner, one of the main characters in 'Atonement', is recruited by the English army and sent to fight for France. But the English army cannot match the German onslaught, and a retreat is ordered. While getting to Dunkirk from his station, he witnesses much destruction. He sees a child's leg, just a leg dangling from a tree, and it makes him sick. He tries to rescue a mother and her child from German bombing, but fails. There is hopelessness, death and distress everywhere. The soldiers smoke to keep hunger away, and water is scarce. The taunts and concern of his companions, the attitude of soldiers desperate for food, drink, rest and love make a deep impact on him, and us. The mind boggles when one thinks of the enormity of the carnage caused by the second world war. So many lives lost, so many hearts torn asunder because of the fancies of just one madman who happened to be ambitious and powerful! I used to consider the 'peace and no change' concept simplistic, but since reading this book, I have almost become a pacifist (contrary to my liking). Now, when I think about war, I see the dangling leg of a child in my mind's eye, and it really hurts.

'Atonement' was also in the news for wrong reasons. McEwan was accused of plagiarism . This accusation notwithstanding, I loved the chapter on the nurses' work. Service to the patients while not minding their own physical difficulties is what they learn during probation. They wear neck-biting uniforms, inhale disinfectants all day and their identity is reduced to just a badge...

McEwan uses the name 'Turner' for Robbie throughout the war-description. At the hospital, the nurses are not allowed to reveal their first names to the patients; it is an unwritten rule. That is how war and death are. First names and personal details, emotions, ideas and everything else that make one human life distinct from another are completely obliterated. One just becomes one of many, just a statistic.

There is one aspect of war, positive to some. That is economic revamping. Some businesses thrive during war and after war (I suppose that is why wars are made!). I started wondering about the ethics of manufacturing chocolate bars to distribute in the army (and actually wanting the war to happen, so this chocolate-bar-business may thrive), but I did not get anywhere. I go one way, and it is communism that I detest. And the other way does not look good either. My question is, where does the layperson stand, when it comes to issues like this? Is a person allowed to be selfish? If so, how selfish can (s)he be, without transgressing ethical and moral boundaries? This is a question that does not have an answer.

'Atonement' is a great novel. It is a serious book, definitely worth a serious read. I did not particularly like the ending, though. It leaves one with a calm but yet sinking sort of feeling, and my Indian mind would have been more at ease if the ending were a little more cheery. But perhaps it is just as well... When life itself ends in tragedy so many times, why shouldn't a novel?

Malnad Trip

It is amazing how something as common as a cool breeze (refreshing, but common nevertheless) can take one on a nostalgic trip down memory lane. It happened to me when I was returning from work today evening. It was very cloudy, and considering the weather for the past few days, it was very cool. I was sitting in the car, looking at the trees passing us by on either side. And suddenly I realized how cool it was today, just like it was when I visited Malnad, a few years ago.

I have acknowledged elsewhere, I think, that I have this strange affinity towards malenaaDu. My trips were few and short, but when walking around there, I have felt at least as local as the locals themselves. I feel that every tree and every rock there speaks to me in a language that I understand. The rain (this trip, the one I enjoyed most, was in June and it was raining hard) could deter others from venturing out, but not me. A part of my mind has lived there, enjoying and worshipping the pristine beauty of the hills and the valleys of malenaaDu every day, before I even saw the place for the first time.

We went to Kukke Subramanya first and the same evening, we went to Dharmasthala. Thence we went to Beltangadi via the picturesque Charmudi ghats. We then went to Horanaadu and from there, to Sringeri. It was then back-to-Bangalore from there. The interesting thing about this trip was not so much about the deities and the temples in the places we visited. That was there, of course, but what is making me nostalgic is the route we took. We happened to take local buses everywhere. I did not want to hire a private vehicle, because then I would remain an outsider. This cost us some time, but it was worth it. A couple of the drivers of the buses stopped at some places, to let me take photographs.

The beautiful Malnad becomes greener and more beautiful during the rainy season. The already thick forests become thicker. The hills and the trees bathe, now in the pouring rain and then in the sunlight. When it rains, it is hard to even see one's hands. The roads are lined on either side with thick trees, a la wooden grills. Clouds rest languidly in the verdant valleys, unwilling to rise up. Here and there, one sees solitary houses. Every couple of kilometres, there is a small, often shy waterfall. Ah... if any place on Earth can be called Elysium, Malnad should be one of the contenders.

A couple of lines from a poem of Prof.Nissar Ahmed's, come to mind -
ಈ ಘಳಿಗೆಯೆ ಮೈ ತಾಳಿತು ಎನುವಂತಿದೆ ಲೋಕ
ಇಡಿ ಸೃಷ್ಟಿಯೆ ಸೊಗವಾಂತಿದೆ, ಸಮಯವೇ ನಸು ನಿಂತಂತಿದೆ
ಬಾ ಮಾಡಿಸು ಕಣ್ಮನಗಳಿಗಾನಂದದ ಅಭಿಷೇಕ
I do not know if I can make another trip like this ever again, in spite of my yearning. All I have now are the wonderful pictures, enshrined in my mind. I do not think that I can ever forget them.

Tata makes cars that cost under $2500

A New Set of Wheels - Sepia Mutiny



I happened to read this interesting article on Sepia Mutiny. Cars are becoming cheaper and cheaper. This article on Thatskannada gives some interesting information about JRD Tata, and how he wanted everybody to be able to own cars (please look at the end of the article).



However, coming back to this piece, one line caught my attention:



"Forbes quotes consultants at Roland Berger as estimating that it would
cost as much as $4,000 on top of Tata’s $2,500 price to engineer the
car to meet U.S. safety and emission regulations, transport, pay
tariffs, market it, pay lawyers and other warranties"

What *is* this! If it is for the US, cars need to be engineered to meet U.S safety and emission regulations! I have absolutely no problem with that, but should we not think about safety and cleaner technology ourselves? Just travel for half an hour in any of Bangalore's roads, and you will not want to travel anywhere, ever again. For the millions of hapless commuters, vehicle emission has become regular breakfast and snack.



And it is not totally the Government's fault. Suppose they pass more stringent emission-regulation laws, the public will somehow get around the "problem" by bribing the authorities and getting an emission certificate. Auto drivers and BMTC drivers will go on strike. Some buses will be burnt and the law will be repealed. There, that's the end of all reformation.




I am wondering if we can do anything other than complain...

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Global warming - India Today's article by Raj Chengappa

Yesterday, I happened to read an alarming article, 'Apocalypse Now' by Raj Chengappa, in India Today. There were 'sister-articles' about what is wrong with the monsoons and melting glaciers. As I read the article, I started feeling queasy in my stomach. If we do not take control of the pollution-situation right now, we are literally going to be in a soup (of very salty water, dead aquatic animals and industrial waste), what with the sea level rising because of global warming. How is this for starters - there was a picture of the Gateway of India, half submerged in the sea. Or these statistics, I quote - "379 parts per million is the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the highest in 6,50,000 years, and 2035 is the year when the Himalayan glaciers may totally disappear, causing catastrophic disruptions". We will be paying the price for decades, if not centuries of harm that we have inflicted on Mother Earth.

Raj Chengappa quotes Syed Iqbal Hasnain, a professor of glaciology, who saw that the snout of the gangOtri glacier that feeds Ganga had developed huge fractures and crevices along a 10-km stretch, which indicated large-scale ice-melts. The professor also saw that the temperature was an average five degrees Celsius higher than last year's. According to the professor, this kind of deterioration is unprecedented. He (Prof. Hasnain) says: "If the rate continues, we could see much of the Gangotri glacier and others in the Himalayas vanish in the next couple of decades."

Heavens! Where would we be if the Gangotri glacier disappeared? The fertile plain fed by Ganga would be only a memory, while North India would become a desert! Our monsoons have already become erratic, and no one would be surprised in the least, if the above scenario were to be seen soon. If this article is not a terrifying wake-up call, I do not know what is.

As it is, I rant enough and I do not want to write about the other horrifying statistics given in the article. Chengappa gives some simple suggestions on how we can help reduce global warming, in our own small way. Here goes: (My comments are preceded by 'P:')

1. Replace incandescent bulbs with compact flourescent lamps.
2. Use solar devices to heat water for bathing. P: I think this is very popular already. I would like to add solar cookers and solar inverters to the list. Visit the india-solar mailing list on yahoo groups.
3. Construct green (=environmentally friendly) buildings. P: Some suggestions: Use hollow bricks so it does not get too hot or too cold in the house. Result- you save on cooling and heating. Have skylight(s), so you don't have to turn on electric lights till late in the evening. Position windows so that you get maximum light out of them. Use eco-friendly paints. Grow plants in and around the house.
4. Turn off computers when not in use. Apparently they consume as much energy as three 60-W bulbs (P: I did not know this!!). So, avoid the standby mode.
5. Switch off the lights when not in use.
6. Conserve water. Use sprinklers or drip-irrigation devices for watering lawns or growing crops. P: I have read that this works for home gardens too. Can't wait to try it out.
7. Check your tyre-pressure often to save fuel.
8. Buy energy-efficient appliances.
9. Prepare for disaster: Dengue and Diarrhoea cases are expected to rise. Ensure that your local hospitals are well equipped to handle the imminent crisis so that recovery is quick and there is minimum loss of life. P: Folks, if this does not scare you, you're not human.
10. Buy fuel-efficient cars. For every litre of petrol consumed, about four kg of carbon dioxide gets injected into the atmosphere. P: Reva tops my list of favorite cars.
11. Walk, do not drive. If you must drive, combine a lot of chores. P: You will benefit from the exercise, and will help the environment too.
12. Reduce air-travel.
13. Good quality shower heads ensure the flow of water is low but efficient, thereby conserving energy.
14. Consume less. P: The most difficult thing in this consumer-driven age.
15. Don't waste water.
16. Recycle
17. Switch to wind power. P: Dunno how this can be implemented.
18. Shun plastic bags. P: If you do have plastic covers, reuse them as many times as you can. In the US, almost all shops have this system of returning carry-covers back to the store itself. Something like that can be started here also.
19. Use public transport. Push the government to improve public transport facilities. P: Using the public transport - another hard thing to do. Pushing the government - much harder. What do we do?
20. Save paper.
21. Rationalize price of electricity. ...haul up politicians for indulging in populism and educate villagers on the virtues of paid power. P: Virtually impossible
22. Plant trees: Make it a point to plant and take care of as many trees as you can.
23. Switch to bio-fuels.
24. Demand clean technology. ...get the government to persist on developed countries to sell clean technology to India cheap... P: Again, very hard to do.
25. Let others know. P: I am doing my part by writing this post :)

I agree with the author on most of the twenty-five points. The only thing that seems impossible to do is persuading the government to do anything. They are more interested in increasing reservation quota and fighting with the opposition. It is totally in *our* hands to make our situation better. It is more we-have-to-do-it, than we-can-do-it.
In addition to the above 25, if you have any more suggestions, please share it with me, and also the readers of India Today.
Thanks.

Mallinatha

Kalidasa is regarded as kavikulaguru (=the preceptor of the clan of kavi-s). Almost as famous as Kalidasa in the literary circles, is Mallinatha, who has written commentaries regarded very highly by scholars, upon Kalidasa's works.

There is this little-known story (which is, in all probabilities, a legend, ದಂತಕಥೆ) about Mallinatha that I would like to share. I concluded that it was little known, because I could not find references to that story on the internet. I had read it long back, in a Kannada book for children.

Mallinatha was a pampered youth from a rich family. He was made to learn under capable teachers, but he was too lazy to be competent at learning, and abandoned his studies soon. He grew into a handsome youth and since he was from a rich family also, he was in high demand as a son-in-law. He was finally married to a very learned woman.

Mallinatha's wife noticed soon that her husband was too un-knowledgeable for her liking. When one day, Mallinatha praised the beauty of a flower lying on the road-side, she remarked "Of what use is its beauty? Since it does not possess fragrance, it cannot be used for worship". These words stung Mallinatha, and he resolved to restart his learning.

He enrolled himself in a gurukula, and began his studies. For a married youth who had passed his life thitherto in nothing but luxury, life in a gurukula was really hard, but he did not mind that. His guru had instructed his wife, the gurupatni, that mallinatha had to get neem oil instead of ghee, with his meals. Mallinatha was so engrossed with his studies, that he did not notice that he was being served neem oil daily. Because of his assiduous efforts, he made progress in his studies by leaps and bounds.

One day, while he was having his meals with his guru, he noticed that there was something wrong with his food. He said to the gurupatni "Mother, the food is bitter today!". The guru who was sitting next to him, smiled and patted his back, and said "Your education is complete today. You may go home now". He then explained to the puzzled Mallinatha that all during his stay at the gurukula, he was being served neem oil and that he had not noticed it at all, till then.

Mallinatha went back home to the joy of his wife and parents, and wrote the famous commentaries on Kalidasa's works.
The story does not end here. The next part of the story is from Dr.R.Ganesh's "kavitegondu kathe".
Seeing that her husband was now a very learned man, Mallinatha's wife asked him to write a poem about her. After much coercion, mallinAtha wrote a poem, likening her to shoorpanakhaa (रामवैरिभगिनीव राजसे !)
Mallinatha's wife was irritated by this description of her, and was waiting to get back at her husband. Now, in his commentaries, Mallinatha had the habit of writing "ityarthaH" (=this is the meaning), "iti bhAvaH"(=this is the import). He used to be so engrossed with his work, that he used to use these words even during normal conversation. When, one day, Mallinatha asked her what was for lunch, she replied
इत्यर्थ-क्वथितं चैवेतिभाव-तेमनं तथा
सज्जीकृतेद्य भुक्त्यर्थं तुष्यतां भवदाशयः ।
"There is boiled ityartha, majjigehuLi called iti bhAva. Have this lunch and be satisfied!"
Mallinatha was justified in being proud of his wife!