History makes Sense

I’m not a historian, never did I learn history as a major subject nor did I read it much, I did my graduation in Engineering and works in an environment where history and related topics are of literally zero use in my daily activities. History and historical thoughts, still I believe, need to be seeded, discussed and taught.

History is not some day’s story of someone else’s past but it is our own story as how we evolved, how we developed, how we were brought up; the introspection of our own identity to the qualified, blossomed social animal and to a larger extend the story of our existence too. To know the information 1000 years back may not fetch you the next day’s meal, but it can tell us the reason why we eat, the way we breathe and the reasons behind each and every human action, the end result of tireless work of numerous historians - the fact, even if we accept it or not.

’Why should you bother what you are, who you will be and what you have to be’? - This is a high degree of individualism and pseudo independent thought. Forget about the civilized human populace, every single species in the whole of universe depend each other for existence, denial of which would be a mere darkening of the truth. We need to keep safe the gains and falls of the past to have a better tomorrow.

Isn’t there a difference between scoring and knowing? Remembering a fact without understanding how it is related to life may score us couple of examination marks, true; but as individuals, we know and grow little; gain as well. This is applicable everywhere. A mathematical formula can be read re read and over a period of time can be memorized, and once we spit it right on an answer sheet we may gain few marks or grades, but those are mere figures, or expressions unless we relate them to actual life; as useless as the dumb information we read from the history books.

It is these insights from the whole string of good and bad experiences make men a developed species. And there helps history and the historical thoughts which make us more rounded as human beings. The means, the ways and more importantly the mistakes our predecessors committed in their lives define ours too and it is foolishness to state that we care them not.

The very fact that incidents of distant past will not leave its traceable remnants makes the job of a historian challenging. It is not the historians who cannot see beyond the nose, but it is those who manipulate the facts for their selfish needs. Is it not the same history that taught all of us to denounce Hitler and the perpetrators of all the genocides over the world? Is it not the same history that taught us that the problems all over the world are always the struggle between the haves and have-nots’? Then how can history be harm to humanity?

We cannot diverge from the truth to say, that only a well written history is the epic of real life. It focuses the actions of men in an attractive and jubilating luminance. Rejecting what is unjust and superfluous, it mixes its picture with real, warm, and well drawn images. Yes, it is a story and all historians are story tellers. He, who controls the present, controls the past. He, who controls the past, controls the future. History is not a single college book or a news paper article published in the past. It is the record of the things that we experienced, united with others. Well written history must always be the result of genius and taste, as well as of research and study. But history, while it throws the light and speaks, confines itself to facts, related to actual events. The absence of a well knit nest of history and historical study in the modern day scenarios does not necessarily mean that history and historians have lost their significance.

The dignity of history consists in recalling the incidents with integrity and accuracy, and in presenting human agents and their actions in an interesting, instructive and informative form. The primary element in history, therefore, is truthfulness; and this truthfulness must be developed in a constructive form. Efforts must be to revive the truthfulness in our history, the integrity of the facts that we push on to the coming generations, the transparency and the open ness to accept, acknowledge and correct the old mistakes, and not to put the blame on history for all our ills.

Yes it is true, history was always written by the victors, but remember, there are no chronic victors in humanity. The only ultimate victor is truth and time; both are fantastic historians!

Wonderfools.....!!!

Something which is beyond the reach of man but made possible by a conscious, patient effort; may I call it wonder? A calm beach, a mist clad dawn dusty path, hovering butterfly in an autumn garden, a little child’s sweet smile; for me all are wide eyed wonders.

The way to touch all the springs of wonder in us is to get before our eyes as thought, that which we are feeling and doing. The things that we do we think not. What I am I cannot describe anymore than I can see through my eyes. The moment another describes to me the man I am -- pictures to me in words that which I was feeling and doing, I am struck with surprise. I am sensible of a keen delight. I am and I see my being at the same time. These glance from it to the pictures that we see with lively pleasure and all the wonders are so.

A great work when analyzed is a set of detached parts; a poem is a detached set of sounds and Taj is a set of detached set of marble pieces. But an inner medium of love and aesthetic architectural perfection connects those inner elements, discovers a perfect law all through, which is never violated. But this law itself is the limit. It shows what ever it can never be otherwise.

Taj was built in the 1600s by the Mughals, its unending beauty, architectural elegance and people pulling charm will last for ever; whether approved by a private organisation or not. But in the era of globalised corporations and liberalized economies innovative means for churning huge money was always a challenge for the new age marketing gurus. But, out of the box thinking and the geographic and political means to accomplish them the New Open World Corporation, a Swiss, more notably, a Profit Organisation, did it, bringing all the smiles to an array of telephone operators, television channels and all those who are fancied to have the gimmicks for a publicity stunt.

It was never the part of any rat race. The cross sections of the world populace (remember only those) who watch television, surf the net and own the mobile phones voted for the wonders of the world! What? Yes, that is how we define wonder today. Or that is what we are taught, that wonder is decided just like that! Feelings of mystery at the root of all our delights are lost when we discover uniformity of this law. The moment Taj goes for the race and people are urged to rediscover the wonder in it, this delight is lost.

Agra is one of the worstly managed cities of India. Those who made all these hues and cries in the past few weeks should have shown half this enthusiasm when the industrial houses on the eastern bank of Yamuna over a period of time marooned this white wonder. High content of toxic gases in the air, pathetic city roads, highly corrupt public administration all have done much harm to this symbol of love already.

We all forwarded messages, sent SMS’, came out to streets to campaign for the Taj and this cause, those of who did not try any of these, silently watched the fiercely spelt televised debates and analyses aired to our living rooms as to whether Taj will make into the final seven or not. But why? Were all these required? The nation’s precious bandwidth which could have used for some productive purposes went waste for false propagandas. True this would definitely improve the Googling hits of Taj and India at the same time it met the target figures of those who played for it too. All this mess can be bracketed as pseudo nationalism. Had Bill Gates, Mukesh Ambani or Rupert Murdoch wished to include their homes or business houses in the new wonders, they too could have done that. Buy the votes from the company as you buy the shares in the market, float money to support it in the media and public sphere, people will any how come and support and you are through.

Light a small candle in the consciousness corner of your heart, that light will help, be more silent, drop the noise in our head, then, this continuous possession of thinking for any thing and every thing will be stopped, let us be a little wise.

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

Courtesy : Robert Frost (Nothing Gold Can Stay)