In the ocean of infinite space, ceaseless time, and unbounded universe, I a solitary, and insignificant man, filled with awe and wonder, traverse- In Your magnificent fullness, shrouded by Your splendid silence- You abide in eternity, as infinity pulsates with your presence.
In this cosmic stage of countless galaxies and boundless time, You behold me in your effulgence, as I drink on your beauty sublime. As all dissonance dissolves and all that is, is pervaded by your tranquil grace- You reside in your splendorous solitude, and I reside in you undaunted, fearless…
An imperfect translation of Tagore's "Mahabishwe, Mahakashe.."
I wanted to escape. I wanted to go as far away as possible. As familiar things around me got shrouded with unfamiliarity, as certainties in life dissolved into uncertainties, as sensibilities got mired by things that made little sense, I wanted to run away to the unknown, embrace the ephemeral, and forget the past, even if fleetingly.Kashmir, paradise on earth, will you be the refuge to my fugitive soul?
As I looked out from the window pane of the lumbering Rajdhani trekking across the endless plains of middle India, at places brown, rocky and scorched, at places green, lush and verdant, on my journey from Hyderabad to Delhi, I wondered that in all its ageless history with all the countless number of lives lived in it from time immemorial, is not there one kindred soul in some distant past who went through the same feelings that raged in my heart, who would understand my deepest anguish, who would know exactly what it feels to be betrayed and wronged? In that silence of longing and loneliness, this ancient and formidable land of mine, which has witnessed perhaps like no other, the evolution of the human spirit, from the most savage to the lofty sublime, silently whispered- look at me, it is the power of resilience, tolerance and acceptance that ultimately endures. I am the friend you are looking for.
My friend drove me through the narrow misty path that split the sprawling emerald fields spreading across the plains of Jammu. The night was not yet done, and the sweet smell of the early morning and the ceaseless chirruping of the carefree birds filled the air.As I looked groggily far into the blurred horizon, my friend told me perhaps it was Pakistan that I was gazing at. That this land in all its oneness and continuity is actually divided between two inimical forces would have struck me as utterly absurd and befuddling, only if I would have been innocent of the insidious emotions that lie hidden in the crevices of the human heart, influencing much of human endeavors. What should have been one, lied divided, and even in the soft glow of the shimmering morning sun, did I notice the long pale shadows of the past lurking in those vulnerable innocuous fields. The wind blowing wistfully murmured-These are shadows of time. My spirit remains indivisible, untouched, unsullied. Ask your soul, my friend.
It was the following morning that I was finally face to face with the expansive Dal lake, nestled between the protective blue mountains, her water still, inviting and lustrous. Like a blushing maiden, embarrassed by her own breath-taking beauty, she welcomed my weary careworn spirit with an irresistible coyness. As I let myself loose in the drifting shikara, wandering aimlessly in her soft undulating bosom, my heart spilled with gladness, perhaps gratitude too. As time stood still and I drank dreamily from the azure chalice of her unblemished beauty, she accepted me just as I am.Come, unburden your heart and drink from my beauty. I have been waiting only for you. Forget everything, just as I have forgotten.
What a contrast to the intoxicating beauty of Dal Lake was the playful slopy Gulmarg, its mischievousness belied by its smooth white meadows. Promptly I joined scores of gay tourists happily slithering away on the yielding soft white snow in skiis or in sledges. If Dal lake was inebriating, this was invigorating, but both were uniquely rewarding. After being sporty for some time, we took the hanging Gondola and soared through the dizzying heights of the proud Himalayas. At those rarefied heights the snow-clad enormous mountains, stood frozen in time, showering benediction by the unfathomable depth of their imposing presence, as gusts of white smoky wind, spread around the fragrance of their timeless deep meditation. I opened my soul and soaked in the grandeur and the grace, and let it smother my mind into a silent stillness.Son, remember you are my child, grand and pure just like me. Stand tall, and let it be.
The Indus gurgled by, as I galloped on a pony on the meandering track by its side. When we reached Sonmarg, the golden meadow was quite crowded by a motley group of tourists. The snowy mountains rose steeply, it’s white beautifully contrasting the cerulean sky. Over a few smaller rocks, strewn listlessly over the foamy mutinous river, I helped myself to a big smooth-edged stone sitting ponderously, unmindful of all the cacophony . I sat on it for a few moments absorbing the vivacious ebullient spirit of the river as the raucous sound bathed my mind, refreshing and rejuvenating it with a new lease of life. Come join me in my celebration, and dance away your impediments. Don’t you see how lustily I am doing it?
But apart from the spell binding beauty and bounty that mother Nature has splashed on this strip of our country, I could not but feel distressed by the appalling human condition I saw in the valley. The scale of human deprivation, amply evident by rickety houses, listless attires of the people and disheveled broken faces, I have scarcely seen anywhere else. Sunk in those sharp chiseled faces were large bright eyes, and whenever I happened to look into them, and their stare met mine, did I see in them a look of resentment and discontent? But whatever it is I saw, I found it quite unsettling and averted my gaze soon enough . It was as if the lines on their lean faces, their furrowed brows, their unsmiling lips, and their malcontent eyes- all quietly conspired, perhaps without the knowledge of their owners, to tell the story of the ravaging effect of the state’s tumultuous political experience. Peaceful it was, but a discernible uneasiness hang in the air. Who is to blame, which side is responsible, what are the causes - the political contours have become too muddied to come to any conclusive understanding of the woes plaguing the state that would be acceptable to all sides. But whatever it is, it is the human spirit that has to endure all this. But that it has to endure such unimaginable encumbrance in the midst of such stunning grandeur, is an irony that is deeply heart-wrenching.
My Dear friend, now that you have seen me, have I touched your soul with understanding and solace? You are not the only one who is wronged. The human spirit is a marvelous thing. It can tarnish even the most unblemished beauty and blacken it with its meanness. But it can also brighten up the darkest and the gloomiest corner with hope and goodness. Come take away a part of my glorious beauty. But also carry a slice of my melancholy in your heart. Won’t you, my friend?
Joshua Tree though only 80 miles from Riverside, it is only after four years that the trip to this obscure desert park finally came to be. The ocean and the greener parks have a much stronger pull on me, and from what I had gathered about this place, spiny trees and barren rocks, it is not surprising that there was not a strong desire in me to visit this deserted land scape. After spending one day driving and walking in this desolate wilderness, I have to admit that it has a charm and beauty of its own, which though not gregarious of the abundant greenery or the giggling river or the infinite ocean or the towering mountain, can be compared to that of a silent dissenter.
Our team, ironically consisting of citizens of two different nations but speaking the same language-Bengali, started a little later than 8 in the morning. With six Bangladeshis , Tushar, Sourav da and myself, it had a pre-partition all Bengal representation. We got some fruits, breads and lots of drinks. It was less than two hours when we reached the Information Center of the Western Entrance of the Park. I called up mom to hear Mamata got an euphoric welcome back in Kolkata.
Armed with the map of the park, we embarked on our expedition. Soon we found ourselves surrounded by Joshua trees, from which the park derived its name, thousands of them. They were indeed interesting looking trees, bearing an uncanny resemblance to a lanky guy with a crazy hairdo and multiple stretched arms.The entire land scape was strewn with these trees when they were surrounded by equally interesting looking rock formations. The most curious of them was the one aptly named "Skull Rock". We criss-crossed the park, at times scrambling the rocks, catching a misty panoramic view of the Palm Spring Valley from a vantage point ( the mist a result of the pollution), and simply rambled in the rocky arid terrain. Other than the Joshua trees, there were different kinds of cactii and shrubs dotting the land. One remarkable kind was the Cholla Cactus. Woolly and innocuous in its appearance, light green in color, about three or four feet in height, they are notorious for their sharp spines. Hundreds of them covered a large area called the "Cholla Cactus Garden", which had a board at its entrance saying "If the plant bears any helpful or even innocent part in the scheme of things on this planet, I should be glad to hear of it"- J Smeaton Chase, curtly expressing the feeling of an utilitarian mind.
The most memorable part of the trip came with the sunset-saunter in the meandering sandy path, which can be mistaken to be a riverbed, cutting through the hilly slopes on two sides and flanked by trees greener and fleshier than the ones we saw all day. It was the Cottonwood Springs.The stroll in the shadow of the setting sun together with the cool breeze caressing our faces, and the gentleness of the place contrasted to the ragged landscape that we saw all day, brought a refreshing and rejuvenating element to it and we savored every moment of it.
The glow of the setting sun covered the entire landscape with a stillness and a quiet glory. Slowly the sky turned scarlet, then deep purple, finally dissolving into black. No sooner the entire sky revealed the countless gems which lied hidden in its bosom, the twinkling and sparkling stars, like crushed diamonds, popping up in endless numbers from every corner, unhindered and unobstructed from the city's pollution and light. The moon was conspicuous in its absence. The majesty and the mystery, which remains shrouded from us otherwise, as if in the characteristic divine humorous way, reminded us of how small and insignificant we are in the order of things, but at the same time, how we have been blessed with the most extraordinary of all things in creation, the awareness to witness them and get awed.
His presence in everything I behold, His grandeur and glory, it filled my mind through out the day. It is He who envelops everything and fills it with His essence, consciousness. Once again I realized, that it's in nature, almost untouched by humans, that He reveals Himself the most. It is in such places that one feels connected to Him, almost effortlessly, with an intimacy which eludes us in the concrete jungle.
President Barrack Obama addressed the Muslim world from the pulpit of the Cairo University a few hours ago. Exhorting Islam's hoary past, its myriad and rich contributions in making of the human civilization as we know today, as well as their inability to address some fundamental issues facing the world today, Obama brought out the dichotomy cutting across the Muslim world- that of their zealous adherence to their tradition and faith and that of confronting modernity and progress as defined by the West. Rather than commenting on Obama's speech, let me articulate my thoughts about the Muslim world, their complex world view and their even more complicated engagement with the non-muslim world.
From the 10th century till about 15th-16th century, the Muslim people where not only the most powerful, but where also intellectually, academically, and culturally much more advanced than their European counterparts, who were still rolling in the dark middle ages. That was the period which saw Islam spreading in all directions from its Arabic epi-center, taking with them not only their faith in One Allah and His Prophet, but also their art, science, culture and politics to distant lands. They came and conquered India, they swept through East Asian countries, they spread over Africa and interestingly they also conquered vast stretches of Europe, including Spain and France. It was the golden era of Islam. It is also reported that the works and philosophy of ancient Greece- that of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, were preserved by the Arab intellectuals of the Muslim world, before passing them on to European hands, which would ultimately play a major role as a precursor to the European Renaissance and Enlightenment. It would not be an exaggeration to state that Islam was the dominating power of the world in those centuries.
But then with the rise of European Colonial powers, together with the explosion of ideas during the period of Renaissance, slowly but surely the baton of dominance passed on from the Muslim/Arab hands to the Christian/European hands. The Muslims also faced some crushing and humiliating defeats at the hands of the Europeans, especially in Europe and Eurasia. In Europe, political power got concentrated in the hands of the Church. But at the same time new world changing ideas in science and philosophy, influenced by the spirit of rationalism and skepticism of Aristotle and Plato, started rocking the new epi-center of world power- Europe.
While Europe witnessed increasing conflict between the Faith and the Reason in those centuries and ideas like liberty, rationality, sovereignty, democracy, freedom were born of that tumultuous wedlock between the Church and Free thought, the Muslim world quietly retreated into their ghetto, sulking in their loss of power, defensive and determined to remain free from European influence. Uninhibited pursuit of knowledge and an invigorating intellectual life, which was how Islamic civilization can be characterized between 8th-15th century was all but replaced by indoctrinated and dogmatic understanding of the Holy Quran, and a civilization based on it. Uncertainty and loss of power in the political domain led to certitude and exclusivity in religion.The separation of Europe and the culture of European Enlightenment and the Arab world with its own understanding of the world, rooted in their interpretation of the Holy Quran, was almost complete. Perhaps some vestiges of interaction remained in the periodic clashes of the two sides, but that only increased the feelings of hostility and bitterness.
Over the last few centuries majority of the followers of Islam have defined their identity based on a defensive mindset with regards to their faith. In their forced exclusion, they have rigorously created this division of Us vs. Them- the faithful vs the infidels. This differentiation was central to their self-identity. The difference in the attitude of the Muslims of the 9th-10th century, who at the height of their glory and power, self-confident and sure of their faith, were far more liberal and tolerant of diverse ideas, and even learning from and preserving those foreign ideas, and the Islam of 17th,18th and 19th century which was hostile to outside influence, parochial and inward looking, cannot be more striking.
But the world started changing very quickly from the middle of 19th century and by 20th century the two sides were again face to face. But clearly the Europeans and European ideas where ruling the world. All the major political ideologies of 20th century- Nationalism, Socialism, Communism, Nazism, Fascism- were born in Europe, as did all the major scientific break throughs and discoveries. The big colonial powers were European, in fact, large Muslim populated areas were colonies of Christian European powers- mainly British, but also Portuguese, French and Spanish.That is the proud and zealous Muslims, who were not completely reconciled to their humiliating defeat by the Christian Europeans, now vastly superior and definitely more powerful, where again confronting each other. Though a few centuries have passed, the tides of resentment have not really ebbed between the two worlds and the tension could always be felt under the surface.
When we look at the events of the world today with this back ground, we would have a clearer perspective and a better understanding of them.
