Love, beautiful word. Isn't it? It is really one of the most pure & divine feeling on earth. Not only we, the humans but animals and even plants also love. But, what is love? How can anyone sense love? No, here I am not interested in defining love rather I am just trying to pen down my feelings about WHAT LOVE IS NOT OR CAN NEVER BE?
Most of us are familiar with the famous novel “Devdas” written by Late.Shri Saratchandra Chattopadhyay & its famous character Devdas, who lost his childhood love Paro, drowned himself in liquor & ultimately died. People call it love and the story as a tragic love story. But I am sorry, I would like to take the privilege to call it “A Saga of selfishness & revenge".
Love is a beautiful creation! Can it really end up in something so sad and destructive? Can we really call it love? The character Devdas, a lover of Paro....when Paro married another man, he renounced his family and his duty towards his mother & grandmother , no surprise he didn’t think his responsibility towards his society, humanity or country but he thought only about himself. He didn’t think that his plight would hurt everyone who loves him. In fact, he did so to hurt them including Paro. Can it be love ?
Love originates from unselfish devotion for somebody. It cannot result into hurting anybody at least not the person whom we love. Love can’t make one selfish to such an extent. Love is about subjectivism rather than objectivism. Love has no objective to own somebody or something one loves rather it is all about giving our unconditional love. Love brings us closer to our near ones and if it does the opposite, I feel it can’t be called LOVE.
Few years ago a very sentimental story ran across internet. It was about a simple boy who was a mediocre soccer player. He outperformed on the final day of his match, and when he was asked how ? His answer was that his blind father who used to come everyday to the match was no more, and it was the first day he was seeing the match from the heaven. He could drown himself in the ocean of sadness but it was true love which inspired him to play at his level best to make his father happy even in the heaven. His tribute to his father was true love.
I started this article with a story from a novel, to quote one more example I would like to tell you about “Nandini” a short story by veteran Indian author Premchanda. In this beautifully woven story an aimless boy gets the meaning of life because of Nandini, a cow. When Nandini came into his life, it became the pivot of his life but Nandini was taken away by a landlord and this boy lost everything he acquired. But he truly loves Nandindi & doesn’t go back to his old mundane lifestyle but gets himself indulged into productive activities. A tribute to his love. He retained the happiness Nandini brought into his life.
All these facts about love may sound idealistic but it is also true that love helps us to rise above. It is difficult but not impossible.
Not only in fiction but in reality also true love resulted into great creations and achievements. The great poets & authors like saint Meerabai, Tulsidas & Saraswati Chandra are legendary examples of this.
I understand, love is accompanied with pain. But trust me, love has the power to heal also, we just need to trust love.
My purpose of this article is simple: no matter if we get what we love: a person, a passion or anything but first we should realize the true nature of this divine feeling and our love should always result in something beautiful & fruitful to the life on earth. Love can never make us to run away from our duties, from our near and dear ones, from our lives but can only bring us closer to these.
Love is the offspring of unselfish & unconditional devotion and dedication, it can never make a person selfish. Love become a center of somebody’s life but can never make a person self-centered.
One can have different views on it and can quote different examples but one thing is for sure: Love can never be a saga of selfishness & revenge but a always a beautiful & pure emotion full of devotion, unselfishness & forgiveness.
With a pure smile,
Pragati Soni
PS: I wrote this aritcle around 4-5 years back. I kept the title as "Devdas - A Saga of Selfishness & Revenge" however now I feel, positive feelings should have more positivity hence I have changed the title.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Monday, July 10, 2006
Valmiki
‘Valmiki’, what is the first thing that strikes our mind when we listen, read or utter this word, obviously, the great epic Ramayana. So, am I going to make u read about Ramayana or Valmiki? Well absolutely not. I am not going to talk about Ramayana or Valmiki but something different...
I believe that we not only live life but also learn life every moment. No one comes on this earth as a teacher of life but we all are students in Life's classroom. Even Arjun, one of the five Padavas & great scholar sought the knowledge of life from Lord Krishna. We are simple ‘Human Beings’ and bound to learn life, sometimes from somebody's experience and most of the times from our own.
During our lives it happens many times that we commit mistakes and even blunders. Many people follow wrong paths. Some commit crimes and even sins. Sometimes we may be the privileged ones to realize these. But then what? We feel ashamed of themselves, we go into our shells, we blame themselves, we cry, we punish ourselves, we go into depression that may be chronic, we even recline to commit suicide and if alive we may make our life hell. We waste our lives in doing something futile and even fatal and that is ‘Regret’. We fail to realize the fact that life is too short for repentance & we need to come out of the guilt to do something to compensate any wrong deed.
Now, why we tend to do all the above mentioned negative things? Well, it may be because of lack of support, lack of self confidence, lack of motivation or may be because these are the easiest things to do. Whatever may be the reason but the ultimate loser is the mankind.
The toughest thing to do is to rise above ourselves & to make a comeback in the world of good deeds and it requires: willpower to change & hope that we can bring that change. The toughest thing is perhaps the transition from bad to good. The toughest thing is perhaps to have the willpower to hang on in our efforts to re-enter in the world. The toughest thing is to keep the hope when there is no hope at all. And that’s where I would like to recall Valmiki. Who was he? A Bandit! But do we recall that? No, obviously not. What we recall is his greatest creation and a gift to mankind: the Ramayana. He did one of the most difficult things on this earth, not writing the Ramayana but having the willpower and hope to change from a bandit to a saint, a transition from bad to good.
Here I am not saying that we can do any bad thing on this earth as we can always return from that path. No, absolutely not. We may not have the same people around whom we can ask forgiveness. We may not have the breadth to go and ask for forgiveness. Life is uncertain. That’s what I believe, do good deeds as there is no tomorrow and abstain from the bad ones as we may have no tomorrow.
All what we need to remember is that life is meant to live, to live in such a manner that we would be able to smile after our day's work and in the twilight of our life. Though difficult to live but we have only one life to live and to help others to live & smile. Past is always a past. We can neither rest on our laurels nor waste in holding on anything bad.
And it is an eternal truth that good deeds can always overcome bad deeds. If not, then how come only the word ‘Ramayana’ clicks to our mind when we listen, read or utter the word ‘Valmiki’?
With a smile willing to change for better,
Pragati Soni
I believe that we not only live life but also learn life every moment. No one comes on this earth as a teacher of life but we all are students in Life's classroom. Even Arjun, one of the five Padavas & great scholar sought the knowledge of life from Lord Krishna. We are simple ‘Human Beings’ and bound to learn life, sometimes from somebody's experience and most of the times from our own.
During our lives it happens many times that we commit mistakes and even blunders. Many people follow wrong paths. Some commit crimes and even sins. Sometimes we may be the privileged ones to realize these. But then what? We feel ashamed of themselves, we go into our shells, we blame themselves, we cry, we punish ourselves, we go into depression that may be chronic, we even recline to commit suicide and if alive we may make our life hell. We waste our lives in doing something futile and even fatal and that is ‘Regret’. We fail to realize the fact that life is too short for repentance & we need to come out of the guilt to do something to compensate any wrong deed.
Now, why we tend to do all the above mentioned negative things? Well, it may be because of lack of support, lack of self confidence, lack of motivation or may be because these are the easiest things to do. Whatever may be the reason but the ultimate loser is the mankind.
The toughest thing to do is to rise above ourselves & to make a comeback in the world of good deeds and it requires: willpower to change & hope that we can bring that change. The toughest thing is perhaps the transition from bad to good. The toughest thing is perhaps to have the willpower to hang on in our efforts to re-enter in the world. The toughest thing is to keep the hope when there is no hope at all. And that’s where I would like to recall Valmiki. Who was he? A Bandit! But do we recall that? No, obviously not. What we recall is his greatest creation and a gift to mankind: the Ramayana. He did one of the most difficult things on this earth, not writing the Ramayana but having the willpower and hope to change from a bandit to a saint, a transition from bad to good.
Here I am not saying that we can do any bad thing on this earth as we can always return from that path. No, absolutely not. We may not have the same people around whom we can ask forgiveness. We may not have the breadth to go and ask for forgiveness. Life is uncertain. That’s what I believe, do good deeds as there is no tomorrow and abstain from the bad ones as we may have no tomorrow.
All what we need to remember is that life is meant to live, to live in such a manner that we would be able to smile after our day's work and in the twilight of our life. Though difficult to live but we have only one life to live and to help others to live & smile. Past is always a past. We can neither rest on our laurels nor waste in holding on anything bad.
And it is an eternal truth that good deeds can always overcome bad deeds. If not, then how come only the word ‘Ramayana’ clicks to our mind when we listen, read or utter the word ‘Valmiki’?
With a smile willing to change for better,
Pragati Soni
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)