This is part 2 of an ongoing rant series - Part 1 is here.
Disclaimer: This might get real so buckle up. Might have examples from popular science fiction movies, novels or fan theories which fyi is a new religion and you better be ready. The producers or studios may be releasing them for the money but there is appeal in it, there is art in it and there is science in it.
I moved to Delhi in the 9th standard, which apparently is a make-or-break year for an Indian kid and for his parents because it will or will not shape their child's future. After recovering from the cultural shock, the class dilemma and the need for extra-curricular exposure, with three other classmates I became a part of the team that would compete in the National Science Exhibition. We created a theme park that would self-sustain energy, to be specific there was a train that would run on solar power and would also have a turbine that would convert the energy of the wind into electricity. A seesaw would double up as a pump that would water the plants in the park. A swing that could produce energy to run the ferry's wheel. Sadly, like John Hammond's Petticoat Lane from Jurrasic Park, all of it was an illusion. No power was getting transferred or generated all it was controlled by batteries and circuits. It still bewilders me, how we won a gold medal at the District Level, maybe the dream of building a theme park into a self-sustaining entity was new for the judges. Maybe, we had all forgotten the application of science here, that there is energy loss during transfer, transmission and conversion. We showed power and its regeneration as an illusion! Just like Hammond, we overtrusted the element of power in Jurrasic Park, like Henry Wo in the Sequel trilogy whilst experimenting with genetics and I? I was headed towards Scientology. (The core of Scientology is a belief that each human has a reactive mind that responds to life’s traumas, clouding the analytic mind and keeping us from experiencing reality).
Ideally, religion is the same thing just that one believes in the interpretation of written texts, customs, rituals and ceremonies.
Ah! Ceremonies, that make me wonder why we celebrate Birthdays? Anniversaries? The simple answer is for gathering, exchanging propaganda, create a system of influencers and followers and later celebrate adulthood so that one can be pressurized for marriage. Just the other day it struck me that marriage is a social construct invented by individuals who fathomed the constructs of polygamy or sexual escapades of individuals, maybe they fathomed it because they weren't getting it and others were. I mean imagine living on a lowly populated earth ( probably everywhere else is lowly populated apart from the megacities of the world, India and China) where everyone is living like an animal without any social construct - like a bohemian! This brings me to the story of Liberatta -
In a world of wanderlust, there was a little girl named Libretta,A bohemian soul, she danced with the unknown, saw the unseen,From ancient temples to deserts vast to valleys that no one could pass,Her heart beat with freedom, with truth, with no judgement - a life unsurpassed.Yet fate's cruel twist cut her journey short, a missed train and tracks lost,But in her tales, photos, quotes and lines, she forever exuded life,Libretta, the girl who lived with no rules, no foresight and zero regrets in life.
No one has control or the power to control one's life. One moment you are riding your cycling in the rain trying to get to your group and some menacing drunk tries to poke your wheels with an umbrella. Unfortunately, so this happened to me, I stopped and legit whacked this person probably leading all the alcohol in his body to suddenly evaporate. What is wrong with the world, why is hate stronger than love? I mean I have explored this theme in a previous note but I am sure times have changed and hating, trolling and name-calling have become full-blown professions now.
Look what I mean to write and what I've been scrambling above coming back to my favourite topic -
Introducing Lakshman Shanti Teli, also known as @LST on Instagram and @LSTno1bhakt on Twitter. LST used to forward all the videos that his friends forwarded on WhatsApp, a bachelor of science, a programming genius and a young leader of MEOWS - the Modified Established Order World Sena. He too like many concerned with the same-sex marriage verdict was following the Hon'ble Supreme Court's proceedings and listening to the arguments. Like many others, he believed that this quest to obtain a marriage license would rip the fabric of society. He heard from his 'ghar ke bade' and from the leaders of the MEOWS that none of this is a part of our culture, traditions and practises. But he also learned that Sati originated within the warrior aristocracy of ancient India and gradually gained prevalence from the 5th to 7th century, eventually becoming an accepted custom around 1000 CE, primarily among the higher classes. Later the Brits who had got the practice of dowry enacted laws that abolished Sati and Dowry which were bad practise. Similarly, the concept of divorce or intercaste marriage was not found in ancient texts but due to its inclusion in laws have found their necessity and partial acceptance. LST decided that he would build an AI, and feed it with the texts of the Purans, Vedas and Folklores so as to get answers but found out that -
In the Krittivasa Ramayana, two widowed queens, with Shiva's command, Embraced each other lovingly, conceiving Bhagiratha, a king who brought the river Ganges down to earth.
- In Kamasutra part 2, chapter 9, verse 36, there are also third-sex citizens, sometimes greatly attached to one another and with complete faith in one another, who get married together.
- In the "Jayamangala" of Yashodhara, an important twelfth-century commentary on the Kama Sutra, it is also stated: "Citizens with this kind of homosexual inclination, who renounce women and can do without them willingly because they love one another, get married together, bound by a deep and trusting friendship.
- The Sushruta Samhita, for example, a highly respected Hindu medical text dating back to at least 600 B.C., mentions two different types of homosexual men (kumbhika – men who take the passive role in anal sex; and asekya – men who devour the semen of other men) as well as transgender people (sandha – men with the qualities, behaviour and speech of women). It also states that men who behave like women, or women who behave like men, are determined as such at the time of their conception in the womb.
When LST tried to educate the people of MEOWS about this his research and results of the AI were abominated and he was banned from entering the centre of MEOWS.
Never educate the blind that there is light, they can't see it.
The thing is Liberata and LST both wanted to achieve a higher understanding of life and as one chose to travel and explore within, the other tried to explore the old and its links with the new. The common thread though is that of petticoat lane that control is an illusion.
Control is an illusion that pervades various aspects of human existence. Leaders often convey a sense of control and authority over their domain, promising to shape the future according to their vision. However, the intricate dynamics of power, influence, and unforeseen events can shatter even the most meticulously crafted plans I mean India is a living embodiment of plans gone wrong. The unpredictable nature of political landscapes exposes the fallacy of complete control, as external factors, public sentiment, and complex interdependencies shape outcomes in unexpected ways. Similarly, accidents serve as a stark reminder that control over our lives is fragile. Despite our best efforts to abide by traffic laws and exercise caution, the actions of others, environmental conditions, and technological failures can abruptly disrupt our perceived control, resulting in devastating consequences. Ultimately, the illusion of control reminds us of the inherent vulnerability that exists within the complex systems we navigate daily.
All you are left to control is yourself and the urge to hit someone hard !
Call me a fan of Bollywood but -
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