Creation , Destruction and the Sublime Silence : Tandav

ion, Destruction and the Sublime Silence: Tandav Creat THE EXPectant AND FRENZIED DENIZENS – oPUlENT, pauper, devout, seekers and tourists all lined up in the labyrinths of Varanasi to witness the astonishing and stupendous road shows of Shri Narendra Damodardas Modi, prior to the 2017 assembly elections in the most populous state of India, Uttar Pradesh. Manic and tumultuous crowds had similarly greeted Shri Modi in 2014, when he was still to scorch the electoral tracks during the epoch-making hustings that year. The ancient town ofVaranasi is a paramount spot for tourism and the celebrated Ganga – Jamuna culture or tehzeeb. The legendary ancient town is also notable for Raja Harishchandra, the fabled and iconic Indian king, who appears in several texts, such as Aitareya Brahmana, the Mahabharata, the Markandeya Purana, and the Devi Bhagavata Purana. The most famous of these stories is the one mentioned in the Markandeya Purana. Legend has it that Raja Harishchandra gave away his kingdom, sold his family and agreed to be a slave – all to uphold a promise he had made to the sage Vishwamitra. Myths and history apart, the mellifluous strains of Bismillah Tranquility, Silence and the Mind | 383 Khan’s shehnai, quite similar to that of an oboe and Pandit Ravi Shankar’s sitar still strike a resonant chord with lovers of Indian classical music. Women of all hues, shapes and sizes swarm the ancient town to drape themselves in Benarasi sarees. Pilgrims throng the now expanding town to pay obeisance at Kashi Vishwanath, Kaal Bharaiv and Sankat Mochan Hanuman temples to parry all misadventures in life. Aeons ago and for several years thereafter, the devout in the Vanaprastha (the third of the four ashramas as per Hinduism) stage of their lives retired to this township to cast away their mortal selves and to seek salvation from the perennial cycle of birth and death. The sutra of the Art of Living that opposite values are complementary is ideally epitomized and emblematized at the ghats of Varanasi. As the dead are consigned to the flames at the Manakarnika Ghat, at the other end of the spectrum the high priests of Varanasi chant mantras to invoke the benediction of Lord Shiva and Ma Ganga. This dynamic equation represents the creation and destruction of human life, which a discerning seeker can perceive. Some distance away is the pious place of Sarnath. Prince Siddhartha, who metamorphosed into Gautama and upon attaining enlightenment became the Buddha, delivered his first sermon on the Four Noble Truths and the Eight-Fold path to his first five disciples. Buddhism gifted to humanity the Vipassana meditation, a technique to understand the true nature of reality by maintaining sublime silence. Varanasi, Kashi or Benares, the bustling town is a cradle of cacophony and symphony. Through continuous creation, destruction and experiencing sublime silence, the human mind is transported from the clangour of modern life to the calm of the sublime. EPILOGUE What Impacts the Mind? THE BENgALI sIBLINgs wERE MY CLosE companions; their staple diet was fish curry with rice. Our conversations veered around politics, girls, religion (Durga Pooja) and sports. The older one idolized Amitabh, Netaji Bose and Imran Khan. He was an idealist and the younger brother was the pragmatic one.The elder sibling was pushed into pursuing sciences, much to his disapprobation. Their father died of Alzheimer’s and mother succumbed to abdominal cancer. Though they seemed to have recovered from the twin tragedies and proceeded with their careers and lives, they could not realise their full potential. The mind of the elder one, especially, swayed like a pendulum between the past, present and future. There are many of us like him, who continue to be regretful of the past and anxious of the future, never living in the present. Marketing lexicon talks of 4Ps: product, place, promotion and price. I choose to add a few more to the cocktail that impinges the human mind. These are our past impressions, partaking of food and the path of time we traverse on this planet. All the Ps are inextricably interwoven. Human talent spans from the ordinary to the exceptional. This is the product available. It is genetic and must be accepted. 386 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa Richards and Sehwag were exceptionally gifted batsmen – something a less accomplished batsman cannot quibble about. Now, the product can be harnessed and developed through tapas. Resolute practice embellishes and burnishes the product. Sadhana and breathing techniques can magnify the mind’s potential so that it can be high yielding and profitable for the self and society. Let us envisage a house enveloped in positive and negative auras. This is the place where the mind resides. The quality of the mind to be in the present moment would appreciably increase when affected by positive thoughts, incantations, meditations, inspirational speeches or soulful singing.The same mind becomes unsettled and distraught by provocative speeches, squabbles and contretemps. Therefore, it is a prerequisite to protect the positive disposition and aura of the house. How does one promote the mind? The mind loves challenges, however daunting they may be! Maj DP Singh runs with a prosthetic leg. During the Kargil conflict he lost his limb but resolved to acquit himself with every activity that those with normal limbs can undertake. The organization of amputees was suitably christened, “The Challenging Ones” (with a membership of 800 runners). Oscar Pistorius is of course the original blade runner. The price of the mind is directly proportional to the quantum of sacrifice the body is willing to undertake. Both mind and body are conjoined in this endeavour. The mind may be willing, but the body may not submit to its authority. Or the body is disposed to take up the combat, but the mind declines to undertake the activity. If the mind becomes the parachute to transport the body to scale greater heights it will command a greater price and approbation. We are all blessed with remarkable discriminatory power. Epilogue | 387 It is for us to break the barrier and exit the comfort zone to become achievers through sacrifice. Stephen Hawking, despite suffering from motor neuron disability, is a cosmologist and physicist, unravelling the mysteries of the universe. Past impressions have a profound impact on the mind and its performance. Tulsidas wrote, “Our destiny was shaped long before the body came into being.” Impressions or karmas are impacted not only by our thoughts, attitudes, acts, and actions, but equally by those which others undertake under our orchestration and administration. As per Hinduism there are three types of karmas or impressions, namely, Sanchita (accumulated karma – which we cannot bear all in one lifetime), Prarabdha Karma (fruit bearing karma) and Kriyamana Karma (this can change our destiny). The first is carried on forward to the next lifetime. Prarabdha Karma can be mitigated through meditation and yogic techniques, while proper action (Kriyamana Karma) can reduce sufferings. Positive impressions lead to positive intent and a healthy impact on the mind. Negative impressions have an antipathetic and gloomy impression on the mind. Practitioners of yoga, pranayama, and Sudarshan Kriya develop the wherewithal to annihilate impressions/karmas. This needs to be fostered through knowledge, awareness, service and positive company, among others. Partaking of food has a consequential impact on our thoughts and thereby minds. Thoughts are opinions or conceptions. We can have brooding or glum thoughts, celebratory ones or meditative ones. Augustus Hare writes, “Thought is like the wind, knowledge the sail, and mankind the vessel.” The human vessel consumes three kinds of food products, namely Sattvik, Rajasik and Tamasik. Sattvik food is easily digestible, generally consisting of fruits, nuts and vegetarian 388 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa fare. It keeps us alert and aware. Disciplined practitioners of yoga consume this food. Rajasik foods are neither overtly beneficial nor harmful. It includes oily, starchy, aerated drinks, caffeine products, overly salty and sugary items. Individuals who have such food are excitable or irritable and generally not at peace with themselves. Tamasik food consists of meat, alcohol, tobacco, onions, garlic, and fermented and canned food items. These take a long time to digest and make individuals sluggish and torpid. Therefore, generally speaking, those consuming Sattvik food attain a contemplative or a meditative state of mind in comparison to those partaking Tamasik or Rajasik food. The trajectory path of time traversed has an expansive influence on the mind. Various times of the day, months and years impact us. The incidents and events that occur shape the thought processes, alertness and decision making capabilities of our minds. Further, during this span of time, we are likely to encounter many people, friends and associates who also influence our thinking pattern. The human mind through