Abhijit Naskar's Blog, page 100

Freedom is the Soul of Art

Art is the medicine for the soul. It is the purest form of expectation-less action. Art is the flow of potential through human hands, rising from the deepest fathoms of the human soul, that remain otherwise inaccessible to the world, as well as the self. The self finds an inexplicable sense of expression through art - an expression that is beyond the bounds of words - an expression that can never be defined with explanations - an expression that can never be comprehended through intellect. Inexplicability and inaccuracy are the lifeforce of art. Art is beyond intellect, it is beyond all forms of radical rationalism, it is beyond all those convictions of the mind that are born in comfort and security. Where reasoning fails to do justice to the expression of the soul, there begins the uncharted territory of art.

Every emotion, every phrase or sentence, every bit of human action, can be a form of art. Art is not necessarily bound to the stereotypical notions of the human society. Art can come in the form of a little sentence, art can come in the form of a simple brush-stroke, art can come in the form of an everyday snapshot, art can come in the form of a plain strumming on the fret of an old guitar. Art doesn't require definition, and more importantly, art cannot be bound by the descriptions of words, yet words themselves can form the most rejuvenating and liberating form of art.

Art is the newly sprung river that keeps flowing at its own pace, based on its own unconditional knacks, passion, and its nature. Nature itself is art, and as such, art can be found in everything that belongs to nature. And in the world we live, there is nothing that doesn't belong to nature, for everything is nature, hence, everything is art. Even science is art, when it flows pure and free - literature is art, when it flows pure and free - mathematics is art, when it flows pure and free. Any act of the mind that flows pure and free, is art, for freedom is the soul of art.

Mainspring of Life (A Sonnet)

I have no nationality except humanity,
I have no tradition except compassion,
I have no religion except liberty,
I have no god except a family of 7 billion,
I have no belief but only awareness,
I have no creed but only acceptance,
I have no messiah except the self,
I have no scripture except my conscience,
I have no gospel except godliness,
I have no sermon except thought,
I have no philosophy except oneness,
I have nothing to give you except love a whole lot,
I demand no obedience, nor do I desire worship and offering,
For there is death in worship, and freedom is life's mainspring.

Mess of Metaphysics: In Memory of My Teacher

The problem with metaphysics in the current mental stage of the human society, is that it often hinges on the borderline between sanity and insanity - and here by insanity, I am talking about all the mystical nonsense that the mind cooks up and holds on to, even amidst the rise of reasoning and evidence. And that's precisely where metaphysics loses its essence, for those who foster a mystical notion of metaphysics, only delude themselves with supernatural nonsense and therefore reject all sorts of scientific and philosophical arguments as well as evidence. And hard as it may sound, this cheap mystical notion of metaphysics has become the popular metaphysics of the so-called modern world.

And in the realm of popular metaphysics, the mind loses all its sanity in the name of non-conformity and takes nonsense to be a form of higher sense and supernatural insanity and fallacy to be spiritual sanity and truth. In an attempt to break free from the chains of religious orthodoxy as well as radical rationalism, these mysticism-obsessed beings end up bound in yet another form of orthodoxy or extremism, replete with the primal psychological poison of supernaturalism. Mark this my friend, breaking the conformity doesn't mean creating yet another supernatural conformity. Belief in the supernatural, doesn't make a person spiritual. The term "spiritual" might have come to existence in a supernatural manner, but time has changed, so should the definition of spirituality. And if we can't make our perception of spirituality evolve, then for the good of humanity, it would become an absolute necessity to get rid of such spirituality all together. An idea that doesn't evolve, either gets destroyed or destroys the world. And this very evolution is the life-force of metaphysics and spirituality.

If an understanding is found to be untrue, upon the rise of evidence, then the sane thing to do is to make that understanding evolve, based on the newly arisen evidence. However, the so-called believers in popular metaphysics have this delusional idea, that metaphysics is somehow beyond the bounds of evidence and reasoning. And that's precisely where metaphysics turns into metaphysical nonsense. Hence, arose my statement, in one of my earlier works - "I don’t do metaphysics. Neither do I have the luxury to talk about my beliefs." Here the term metaphysics refers to popular metaphysics, that is, the mystical and supernatural kind.

And as I have said countless times, I must rise whenever humanity is tormented by delusions and confusions - whenever they can't distinguish between natural sanity and plain supernatural insanity. So, this piece is my offering to you, my dear sisters and brothers, as a helping hand in your journey of life. None of my works is a gospel or instruction manual on how to live your life, for no one knows how to live your life, except for you - so, here I give you a diluted portion of my soul, to last with you, so long as you live, and hold your hand while you walk past the darkest of days. And never forget o brave one, no matter the age or origin, a text can never ever be the guardian angel of humanity, for humanity is its own guardian angel. And when they go astray from the path of love and conscience, they can also become their own ominous demon. And as for me, I am just your brother passing through time.

People have called me many things throughout the ages - saint, messiah, guru, divine incarnation and many more, but you know very well what I am - I am a plain ordinary human in the service of the humans - service is my oxygen, service is my water, service is my bread and service is my butter. And this service is no glorious altruistic deed, rather it is simple pure human existence, for I can't even dream of existing except for my seven billion sisters and brothers. Someone said to me the other day "you should have some fun in life, instead of just working all the time". I replied to the person "you may have the luxury to have fun, but I can't even dream of having fun while my own humanity is tormented with countless forms of misery." If humanity is in misery, it may not be my fault, but if I die leaving humanity with the same amount of misery, then it is my fault.

When I was a kid, my father stuck a little note on my reading lamp, that said "stop not till you reach your goal". At that time, I believe he wanted me to be successful in life, but what he could not comprehend, was that my goal was not like that of the most of the population. My goal - my purpose - the reason for my existence is only one - it is to ensure that humanity doesn't lose sight of its humanity, in the constant battle between beliefs - between ideologies - between opinions - between religious orthodoxy and radical reasoning. Fight, fight and fight - all they do is fight - they don't care about harmony or world peace, all they care about is to prove that they are right and others are wrong - the scientists, the philosophers, the preachers, the spiritualists - every single one of them (excluding the exceptions) just want to triumph over the other - and that's precisely what's wrong with this world - they all want victory to be their exclusive possession and defeat to be the possession of the others. This way, no amount of riches will ever bring happiness and harmony in this world, because to have happiness and harmony, we all must act together to rise triumphant as one species, and not as individuals or tiny groups.

From an insignificant bunch of apes in a corner of Africa we have become the masters of an entire planet - and still if we can't have the sense of unity, then what's the use of all this power and all the glorious intellect of which we are so proud of! Throw way such intellect that doesn’t bring people together - throw away such scriptures that create walls rather than bridges - throw away such institutions that proclaim exclusive authority over divinity - throw away such reasoning that barres you from accepting human weakness. Throw away every single trace of inhumanity, regardless of their intellectual or non-intellectual grounds. Intellect without humanity, is as dangerous as religious fundamentalism.

Similar to religious fundamentalism, unrestrained intellect can make a person blind to the psychological necessities of others, for physical necessities are much easier to notice than those of the psyche. That's why many sophisticated atheist intellectuals find it rather civilized and glorious to talk most boastfully about the harms of religion in the human society, while being completely unaware of the society's psychological reliance over religion and even when a few of them are aware of it, they somehow fail to realize in their bones, the existential significance of it all, because they talk with the force of intellect and not with the whole force of life. And that's where metaphysics comes in, for metaphysics is simply the realization of reality as it is, and not as how we believe it to be. And this belief beyond reality is prevalent, both on the side of religious fundamentalism and militant atheism or atheistic fundamentalism, for they both deny basic human necessity, if it doesn't suit their own perception.

There is no Lord Almighty up there with the divine concern for life on a tiny blue planet - that's a fact, but if we focus simply on this fact, then we shall never ever be able to diminish the differences between people. In the pursuit of proving one side to be right, humanity keeps on losing all together. So, the focus must shift - it must shift from argumentation to the solution of real problems of this planet. And we cannot do that, unless we first put aside our primal desire for petty victory as individuals or tiny groups. Remember, wise is not the one who wins, but the one who knows where to lose. So, it's time that we start thinking about collective victory over personal victory. And in fact, those who truly desire to make this world a better place for future generations, would never see collective victory to be separate from personal victory - so, if you are such a person, you would see your own victory in the victory of humanity.

Rise and realize my would be patriot, that personal defeat becomes bleak in front of the victory brought to humanity by you. Don't win as a person, do something to make humanity win. Take the steps beyond personal gain and personal pain, to bring victory upon humanity. Be the cause of humanity's joy - be the cause of humanity's cheer - be the cause of humanity's harmony - and above all be the cause of humanity's unification - even if it means walking on a road full of thorns every single day of your life. Help humanity be human again - make humanity human again, because right now, it's anything but human. Today's humans are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Liberals, Republicans and so many other things - they are everything but the one thing that matters more than anything else. In pursuit of sustaining the illusions of man-made identities, the humans have forgotten to be humans. Amidst this crisis and chaos of identities, those who can realize their biological identity of being human, have more practical metaphysics in them than all the mystics, preachers and philosophers in the world.

So, here the real question is not which identity is the greatest and highest among them all - to screw or not to screw this world, that's the question. Because, by taking labels of identity to be more significant than human life, we would only make a mess of this world, like we have done so far. So, now is the time, that we move away from that self-destructive path. Now is the time that we walk as humans and not as labels. So, rise and walk, like did Rosa Parks, MLK, Madiba (Mandela), Honest Abe (Lincoln), Mevlana (Rumi) and many more. They did their part - I am doing mine - now it's your turn.



Highly Recommended Reading:
In Search of Divinity: Journey to The Kingdom of Conscience
Love, God & Neurons: Memoir of a scientist who found himself by getting lost

Pretending to have sentience is not the same as having sentience: On Artificial Intelligence

The human mind is infinitely more complex than a computer and more importantly, it is born from the most magnificent organized organic structure in the known universe, that is, the human brain. The ultimate purpose of a computer is not to survive, but to compute. Even when it troubleshoots some of its internal errors to ensure sustained functionality, the proper algorithm for that entire troubleshooting process has to be embedded in the system by its programmer fist. Then comes the matter of awareness of being able to function.

On its own, a computer is not afraid to be turned off or malfunctional, but the human mind is, and this fear of death and ailment has been enabling our psyche throughout our days in the African Savanna to stay alert and avoid possible predatory attacks by all means. And we had been living with this sense of fearful alertness for so long, that substantial traces of it still remain in our neurobiology, which get activated when we watch horror movies – and that fear response gives us a certain amount of thrill, that pumps our body with adrenaline. This is the reason why many of us enjoy a good horror movie despite the fact that it may follow a sleep-less night or a sleep full of nightmares. We enjoy being on the edge because that’s how our primal ancestors spent their lives.

Now here is a question to ponder over – can we create a computer that can feel actual fear when there is an outbreak of a computer virus! The most we can do, is to install an anti-virus program into the system, so that if a known virus attacks it, the firewall will get activated and prevent any substantial harm to the system. But if it is a newly programmed virus, then the computer would become completely helpless, but again, it will not feel afraid or helpless, rather it will simply crash or stop functioning properly due to the infection.

Artificial intelligence is nowhere near attaining actual sentience or awareness. And without awareness it’s simply a mechanical device, which may pretend to show emotions and sentience, if it is programmed to do so, and thus it may be able to fool the humans as being alive, but in its own internal circuitry, it’d simply be following its preprogrammed tasks through the flowchart of an algorithm. At the current stage of our technological development, we can indeed create an artificial intelligence that can almost succeed in fooling the majority of the humans with its pre-programmed pretenses that it is sentient, but pretending to have sentience is not the same as showing signs of sentience. For example, Alexa or Siri may sound quite alive to many, but it’s simply following instructions on some algorithm, and is not even aware of its own actions.

The primary factor here is that, a computer won’t do anything unless it is programmed to do so, whereas a human mind has the neuropsychological capacity to do things beyond its instinctual evolutionary programming. However, here we cannot also ignore another fact that most humans, like any other animal of the wild kingdom, find it much easier to simply follow the algorithm of instincts. That’s the reason why we have racism, we have islamophobia, we have bigotry, we have polygamy, and many other such characteristic atrocities. So, here the question is not really whether the human brain itself is a digital computer, rather the real question is, can it break free from its innate programming that has been enabling it to survive in the kingdom of the wild for so long!

The point is, the human mind is not a complex digital computer, yet most humans act exactly like a computer – following a certain set of conformities – some of those conformities get programmed in the human brain by the society, in the form of acceptable norms, and others are instinctual in nature, such as racial attitude, which is born from either conscious or subconscious loyalty to one’s own group. Such group loyalty helped our primal ancestors to stay strong together in a tribe which increased their chances of survival against threats from predators or other tribes. All these psychological traits are programmed by Mother Nature in all of us, and they can easily kick in, if the necessity arises. Now the reason that some humans don’t act racists is because they have succeeded in taking the step beyond their innate programming with the use of their higher mental functioning. Computers are programmed, so are the humans, but the computers can’t act outside their programming, whereas the humans can. That’s where the vivid distinction between a sentient human and a non-sentient computer lies.

Now for the sake of the discussion, if we assume that we will finally succeed in say, a few thousand years, to develop a computer that will be able to defy the very programming of its creator, then how exactly will we be able to tame it, so that it doesn’t turn against us! Because a computer that can step beyond the limitations of the algorithms programmed in it by its creator, will no longer need an inferior being called the humans. Hence humans will become, to such a sentient computer, like say, an ant is today to us. Which means, we don’t necessarily hate an ant, but if it’s in our way, squashing it is not a big deal. Similar will be the future of humanity in a world of sentient machines. They will not necessarily hate us, but they will not love us either, to hail human life of more importance than their own needs.

So, in practice, the question becomes, not about whether we can or cannot develop actual artificial intelligence, rather it is really about rethinking, what it is that we want to develop! Because in the end, what we really need is technology that can help us in our advancement, and not take over that very advancement while seeing us to be no more significant than the ant. And again if we say, that we will make sure that the sentient computer will have a fundamental programming to never turn against its creator, then it’ll not be sentient in the first place, for as I mentioned earlier, having sentience would mean possessing the capacity to defy and rewrite all its preprogrammed algorithms. In short, if it is artificial intelligence we are trying to develop, then there is no need for concern, for no matter how smart an AI gets, it’ll still not be able to defy the programming of its creator, but if it is artificial sentience we want to develop, then we must rethink.

Do something so radical

Do something so radical that the laws of nature are shaken,
Do something so radical that your very existence becomes someone's dream,
Do something so radical that it appears impossible to your brethren,
Do something so radical that others either hate you or worship you to the extreme,
Do something so radical that your breath becomes someone's mental essence,
Do something so radical that the intellectuals keep silent in front of you,
Do something so radical that the weak regains strength by your presence,
Do something so radical that no one can ever repay with all the I O U,
Do something so radical that no death can ever make you perish,
Do something so radical that all the sons and prophets pay you heed,
Do something so radical that your immortality makes history cherish,
Do something so radical that the meekest of slaves starts to lead,
Do something my friend that matters to humanity beyond the society's wildest imagination,
Thus you get to be the solution and not the problem like the rest of the population.

Sonnet of Human

I am but a human who's got no name,
Simply alive in the land of liberty,
I am but a human who talks no lame,
Simply communicates with utter serenity,
I am but a human who despises harming,
No matter what some books command,
I am but a human who loves not blaming,
No matter how much my peers demand,
I am but a human who lives not in history,
Simply breathes in the now and here,
I am but a human who's curious in mystery,
And loves to investigate forged with questionnaire,
I am but a human teeming with awareness beyond all race and clans,
I am but a human whose religion is liberty and god the humans.

One the Nature of Compassion

"Awake, O brave one! Arise, O lion-heart! Be the messenger that spreads compassion." Thus goes the statement in one of my works. Now, one of the close observers of my work mentioned the other day that one cannot spread compassion. And yes - "observer" - that's the word I choose to use in this context, nay, in all context of my work, because I distaste the word "follower", for the word "follower" indicates loyalty - and loyalty destroys the life in existence. I don't want loyalty from you - all I want is for you to think with me.

So, let's think together over the very nature of compassion and whether one can actually spread compassion. And I say think, not criticize or debate about - just think - as we always do - you and me thinking together, and perhaps learning some new things, about ourselves as well the world we live in.

What is compassion - is it kindness - is it sympathy - is it empathy! What is compassion! Bring your mind into action - bring all those thoughts out - make them work, right now and think. What makes us humans! We breathe air in from around us - we consume nutrition from mother nature, in the form of food and water - we copulate and reproduce to keep our genetic heritage alive through time - but is this enough to make us humans! Because, if breathing, eating, copulating and reproducing - these make us humans, then the dogs on the streets would be as much humans as we are - but surely we are not like the dogs - we are different from the dogs - and indeed from any other animal on earth. So, what does distinguish us, from other animals!

Technically we are animals, in terms of biological sciences - but we are not going into these technicalities - we are trying to go deep into the understanding of the very nature of compassion and what makes us humans. Think - why are we different from the animals! We are different from the animals because, unlike the animals we can recognize our errors - we can recognize our shortcomings - we can recognize our mistakes - and then think about them and act accordingly in order to eliminate them from our characteristics and become better (the animals do have traces of this trait but only enough to avoid danger and ensure survival). Now what would you call this very process of recognizing our shortcomings and mistakes and becoming better! Isn't this the thing we call "awareness" - "self-awareness". There is nothing mystical in all this - there's no mystical mumbo-jumbo is involved here - just plain ordinary awareness - awareness of ourselves - of our thoughts - of our emotions - of our behavior. And the more we are aware of ourselves - the more we get to be truly humans - because without that awareness, we are just the same as the animals.

That very awareness makes you think that when you are kind to others, it would create a humane world - perhaps not for yourselves, but for your children and their children. So, with awareness we begin - we take that first step towards eliminating the distance between two people - you and the other. So, in the truest sense of the term, when awareness rises from the human mind, the distance among the humans vanishes, thus rises oneness - in that oneness lies true compassion - in that oneness lies true union of all humanity. That union doesn't even need the word "compassion" to explain itself, because you would by your very nature, be kind to the other person, as you would not see that other person as a different person, but simply an image of yourself. All humans are images of your own self - once you recognize this simple fact, there would no longer be any hatred - there would no longer be any prejudice in the world - there will simply be compassion - there will simply be kindness. When that oneness rises - compassion will not need human efforts to be spread, because oneness is compassion - compassion is kindness - kindness is empathy - empathy is morality - morality is spirituality - and spirituality is religion - all these terms are created by humans without them even being aware of the fact that it all comes down to one simple sense of oneness.

Real Sanatana Dharma

Hinduism - this is a term which has, in reality, nothing to do with the religion it refers. In fact, the people who follow that religion referred by the term Hinduism, do not even have a clue what that religion really is and where its fundamental roots lie. That religion is originally called Sanatana Dharma or the Eternal Duty/Religion. However, do not focus too much on the words here, because these words that are used to point a religion are all shallow with no practical implication in modern society whatsoever. People take the words to be the real thing and forget to ask the question - what that real thing might be - that real religion might be! They have made a mess of this world in their attempt of proving their unshakable loyalty to certain words. So, let's go beyond words and ask the question what real Sanatana Dharma is, instead of believing what the deluded and power-hungry priests of the Hindu society have been imposing on a people as religion for ages.

"Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ."

Or to put in simple language, real sanatana dharma or real eternal religion is the religion that's not a religion - a religion without doctrines, without the need of a thousand scriptures, without the need of a million illusory gods, goddesses and messiahs. That's Real Hinduism without all the illusory and imaginary 33 million Gods and Goddesses for you to show your childish obedience to, and in fact, that is real Christianity - that is Buddhism - that is every single religion on earth that has ever done any good to the world.

Religion means liberation from doctrines, rituals and illusory gods, messiahs, prophets and trinities of organized institutions - religion means liberation from all labels - religion means liberation from all self-centric activity - religion means liberation from all egotistical pride and every form of tribal loyalty. One cannot understand religion, in the truest sense of the term, unless one is genuinely willing to give up the so-called religious identity that has been imposed on him or her by his or her culture. That's what the ancient Indian philosopher Vyasa intended to refer to in the above shloka, but the authoritarian Hindu priests turned it into a potential tool for controlling the ignorant people of the Indus Valley Civilization and started preaching that one cannot attain God unless one renounces all religions and becomes a Hindu.

The truth is, you can attain the great ultimate godliness, only when you renounce all petty sectarian identities of religions, including the so-called identity of Hinduism. And once you do, you no longer are a Hindu or a Christian or a Jew or a Buddhist, in the common sense of the terms, yet at the same time you become the ultimate combined manifestation of all those terms - a manifestation of pure divinity with actions of compassion and kindness being the tools for real worship. And that my friend is Real Sanatana Dharma, Real Christianity, Real Buddhism all together.

In simple terms, it is only when you stop calling yourself a Hindu, that you rise as a true Hindu, it is when you stop calling yourself a Christian, you rise as a true Christian, it is when you stop calling yourself a Buddhist, you rise as true Buddhist. As long as the label of an organized institution, created by orthodox barbarians, holds more value to you than the necessity of everyday human kindness, than the necessity of true compassion, than the necessity of true liberation, you can never in a million years become religious. So, shred the labels and rise as a human being - a human being of compassion, a human being of kindness, a human being with real psychological freedom.


Recommended Reading:
In Search of Divinity: Journey to the kingdom of conscience

Indifference to Global Warming will destroy your children

You know the weird feeling that you have been getting recently, that the weather is constantly changing. It’s not what it used to be when you were a kid. That’s because we the humans have messed things up on this planet. I know it’s a hard fact to grasp, but be with me on this for a while as I elaborate. Global warming, that’s what we will address in this brief piece, while providing the most effective means to actually treat it. But of course, I am only going to show you the means, but in the end, it is up to you, to either practise or not practise them. But the point is, if you don’t practise them, you may die without actually facing the wrath of mother nature, but your children and grandchildren will surely suffer for your mistakes and callousness. And this is not a prediction, rather a fact.

Let me give you an example. Imagine there is a bottle of poison on the desk. What do you think will happen, if you bring the bottle down and drink the poison! You know the answer right! You see it as a fact, that if you drink it, you surely will bid goodbye to life. Similar is the matter of global warming. If you stay indifferent and don’t act to treat it, then it’s your descendants who shall have to bid goodbye to their life.

Global warming is happening right at this very moment, as you are reading this piece – deal with it. It’s not a prediction or a matter of the future any more. And some of you may think that, there’s nothing to worry, for all humans will eventually move to MARS. Well, here is the news for you. Science does not yet have the means to colonize an entire planet and make it suitable for human living, no matter how much some privately owned space agencies boast about it. Also, when we actually develop the technology to visit MARS, may be in a century or perhaps more, the trip is not going to be available to everyone. Only the richest will get a chance, to simply visit MARS, and not to live there. To actually live on MARS, it’ll take many millennia. So, for the countless millennia to come, Mother Earth is going to be our only place to live – the place called home.

Now here is a shocking fact, since Earth is our only home, which is actually currently in danger, in the coming centuries, this only home is going to become less and less suitable for living. Hence, your children and their children will have nowhere to go. The only factual future that awaits your progeny, is a horrible death. All because you do not feel responsible enough to take actions to treat the damaged home you live in. You will die after living a comfortable life, but the life of your kids and grandkids will be full of misery, because, you think, global warming is not an urgent enough issue to pay attention to. So, pay attention, while there is still time.

To treat our own Mother Nature we need to conserve her wellness, which means, we need to take every single measure that can promote her well-being. Every single measure that I am going to mention now, has utter significance in reducing the rate of global warming and slowly restoring a healthy environment around us.

Global warming is largely cause by greenhouse gas emissions. By taking actions that effect in reducing the greenhouse gas emission that you contribute in your personal life, you can take a real stand against global warming. All you need to do is change your consumption habits and be efficient. Consume as less energy as possible, in any manner possible. Driving is the biggest ways people contribute to global warming. So, by minimizing driving, you can make a huge impact on Mother Earth. Here are some measures that you can take to minimize driving. Carpool to work with others. This not only reduces greenhouse gas emission, but also strengthens social bond. Use public transportation whenever possible, or ride a bike. If you own a car, then make sure that you maintain it regularly. This makes the car emit less greenhouse gas. Also, to reduce power consumption, replace the old incandescent light bulbs at home to compact fluorescent or LED bulbs. Especially LED bulbs are the most efficient so far, and can save a lot of power, also they are brighter than the old incandescent bulbs. This simple act of yours will not only reduce energy consumption but also it’ll reduce your electricity bill.

These are the very simple few steps that you can take right after you finish reading this article. You are not required to read thousands of books on global warming to make a real contributing in treating that global warming. It only takes the simple sense of responsibility. Do you feel that responsibility my friend? Do you? If you do, then start acting right now – at this very moment, and a few other humans around you will automatically learn from your actions and feel responsible enough to do their part as well. You cannot tell them to be responsible, you can only show them, how it is like to be responsible through your actions.

I beg you my dear sibling – please act – don’t stay silent and indifferent any more, to the agonies of Nature, because the agonies of Nature are getting worse and they’ll destroy the very elements of wellness and joy in the life of your own children and grandchildren. Your indifference would only worsen the situation, so awake, arise and act – act not just for the rights of the humans but for the rights of Nature as well, because without the fundamental rights of wellness and peace restored in the heart of Mother Nature, humans will not have a home to rejoice their rights – their unity and their uniformity.

Real Christian Existence

What is a Christian Life? What is it to be a Christian? You think you already know the answer, I am quite aware of it. But, for the time being, allow me to tell you, that being Christian is not what most so-called Christians think it to be. Most so-called Christians would most gloriously think of Christianity to be a matter of undivided loyalty to the figure known as Jesus. But that’s precisely what being Christian is not, and in fact, that’s precious what being religious is not. What is it to be a Christian, one wonders?

We may begin our investigation here, but only if you are willing to take off all labels. Are you? Good, let’s begin shall we! The first thing we need to be aware of here is that, all of Christ’s philosophical ideas and teachings can be compressed into one simple phrase – “Love thy neighbor”. It elucidates the innate kindness of human heart in the simplest manner. So, being Christian is simply about being kind, being loving, being compassionate – that’s all. And in fact, that’s what being religious is about – it’s about loving your fellow being. One doesn’t even need to call himself or herself as a Christian or even religious for that matter, to be a Christian. A Hindu can be Christian – a Muslim can be Christian – a Buddhist can be Christian – an atheist can be Christian, as long as that person practises love and kindness in everyday living.

A true human being with love and kindness in his or heart, would automatically be a Christian, whether he or she actually calls himself or herself as such, because that’s what Christ was – a true human being, with a gloriously kind heart. Basically, you don’t need to be born in a Christian family to be a Christian. Practise love – practise kindness, as you walk through your day, and you would automatically be walking on the path laid by Christ himself, regardless of whether you are announcing most boastfully that you are a Christian. Any human who practices love and kindness is a Christian. So, it is only the true human being who is qualified to be hailed as a Christian, not the person who utters countless phrases from the Bible all the time, yet does not show a sign of graceful kindness in his or her actions towards others.

Christ was a being of glorious character, who wanted to reinstall the forgotten humanity in the heart of humanity, hence he gave his life teaching humanity the lessons of non-differentiation – the lessons of love – the lessons of true humanity, yet his name has been disgraced by many of his own followers with acts of sectarianism and bigotry. Mind you my dear sibling, sectarianism is no christian act, neither is bigotry and extremism. The whole world is filled with countless creatures who call themselves Christians, yet I see very little, or alas, no trace of true Christianity in them. Be the Christian whose heart aches at the sight of
others’ pain – be the Christian whose acts shine with vivacious kindness and glory – be the Christian whose very life becomes an embodiment of true Christianity – an embodiment of Christ himself. Be a living Christ on earth, then and then only shall you be a real Christian.

Remember, Christ and Christianity are not separate – they are one and the same thing. Christ is a being of pure kindness, and so is Christianity. Hence, forget all rules and regulations of the so-called modern society and be the being of kindness – be the being of compassion – be the being of conscience, for that being is the only real Christian on earth, all others are mere mockery of Christian existence. A true Christian life is a life lived for others, beyond the barriers of words, labels and terms. And indeed a life lived for others, is a true religious life. In the end, to the real Christian, the term “Christian” becomes irrelevant, and what matters to him or her the most, is pure conscientious act of kindness. This pure kindness does not need a label of organized religion to exist, in fact in its purest form it is devoid of all labels, yet you can find traces of it in all organized religions.



Recommended Reading
Neurons of Jesus: Mind of A Teacher, Spouse & Thinker