{"id":9743,"date":"2011-07-19T12:04:24","date_gmt":"2011-07-19T11:04:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=9743"},"modified":"2011-07-19T12:04:24","modified_gmt":"2011-07-19T11:04:24","slug":"carpe-diem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=9743","title":{"rendered":"Carpe Diem"},"content":{"rendered":"

By James Rappai (Jeevanmukta Das)<\/strong><\/p>\n

You doubtfully look at the spurious spare-part the dealer has just shown you and ask, \u2018Chalega kya?<\/em>\u2019(Will it work?) He\u2019ll reassuringly reply, \u2018hah, hah, chalega, chalega\u2026<\/em>\u2019 (Yes, yes, it will work) And if you still standing there mentally scratching you head (which, he can read\u2026 your mind silly) wondering whether to buy it or not, he might reassuringly add, \u2018Chalega nahin saab\u2026 daudega, daudega!\u2019<\/em> (It will not just work, it will run, run\u2026 much like the Duracell bunny)<\/p>\n

You\u2019re still not convinced, for the part in question has that appalling \u2018stuck together with spit\u2019 look about it that we Indians know so well\u2014but hate with a vengeance. You\u2019re are of course thinking of buying it to replace that finely crafted original that was made in some kind of an engineer\u2019s heaven\u2026 and indeed has that \u2018Made in Germany\u2019 legend proudly laser etched on it. But kya kare<\/em> (what to do), that darn thing has inexplicably died on you.<\/p>\n

So while you\u2019re standing there deliberating whether to put the lives of a plane load of people (did I forget to mention that the part in question is that crucial \u2018left phalange\u2019 that holds the plane\u2019s right engine?) just to save a few Rupees\u2014oh yes, it costs just one tenth of the original!\u2014you just might slip into a reverie\u2026 and wonder\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2026why is it that we Indians can\u2019t get it right? Why are we so lax when it comes to delivering quality goods? Why do we have this \u2018chalega\u2019 or \u2018will just about do\u2019 maddeningly casual attitude towards all these heavenly material goods?<\/p>\n

Of course, if you\u2019re an NRI (Non Resident Indian) who has spent considerable time in the Promised Land (USA), then your level of exasperation with India’s chalega attitude is bound to rival Spiderman\u2019s heightened sense of sight and smell, not to mention his talent for climbing up the wall! Then, you\u2019re more likely fuming with that righteous \u2018first world citizen\u2019 attitude, \u2018Why can\u2019t these ‘dirty’ third world Indians get it right?\u2019 Some NRIs even come back to India just to show us how it is done! Most give up halfway and rush back screaming all the way to their adopted mother… land. Why, even a short ten-day trip abroad is enough to transfigure you, turn your head a \u2018grudge\u2019 180 degrees, and Cinderella-ize you from a slum-girl to a proud princess of supreme intolerance.<\/p>\n

Why are we so complacent about quality? Why are we reluctant to expend energy on this world and its activities? Why do we not think it worthwhile to lovingly polish those knobs or whatever until we can see the zit on our nose in it? Why indeed do we have this exasperating \u2018chalega\u2019 attitude?<\/p>\n

But of course we all know the answer to this near existential question. Indeed, the astute English had figured it out a century back\u2026 and they, poor sods, had tried their best to beat it out of us!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not that we are lazy. Nor is it that we do not know quality when we see it, or cannot produce it. The truth is, we just don\u2019t believe in investing so much time and energy in this temporary world. Indeed, we are busy building castles in the Kingdom of God.<\/p>\n

An apt example to give here is: if when travelling by a train, it stopped at a station en-route, you would certainly get down and stretch your legs; but would you go get busy in building a bungalow and engage in some other long term enterprise while there? No obviously, not. In a short time the whistle will blow and you will board and carry on with your journey.<\/p>\n

In other words, the \u2018chalega stance\u2019 is a deliberate one that is solidly anchored by the philosophical understanding wherein you do minimum to get by and keep your focus on the main agenda, which is to finally get off this darn train once and for all. The philosophical ideology here may be succinctly stated as: \u2018simple living high thinking.\u2019<\/p>\n

But this is not all that is there to it either. ‘Sustainable living’ requires you to make do with less that spot on quality. Where is the sense in cutting down a tall tree just to make one perfect toothpick? Conserve our limited resources; live life a little less extravagantly; make do with less; stop acting as if you are royalty; try not to carve your name on the surface of the globe; get on with your life\u2014and die quietly for heaven\u2019s sake!<\/p>\n

In short, what we really have here are two diametrically opposite philosophical points of view. One urges you to live life conservatively and invest in securing your next life as well. The other urges you to live this live to the maximum and go out with a blast.<\/p>\n

In the second ideology the understanding is: \u2018Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero<\/em>!\u2019 Seize the day; put as little trust as possible in the future! Of course, it means: \u2018fully utilize opportunities today (rather than tomorrow) for the future is uncertain.\u2019 But strangely, it is now thought to mean: \u2018have maximum fun today, for you only live once.\u2019 Or, \u2018have no regrets before the curtains come down.\u2019 In fact the term ‘carpe diem’ has almost become synonymous to ‘dangerous living’ or a ‘bohemian lifestyle,’ so much so that most tattoo it on their person. Thus, you have 80-plus grandmas queuing up for bungee jumping and other adventure sports. Indeed, it has become fashionable to draw up a list of daring and decadent feats to perform before the buzzer goes off.<\/p>\n

So, which is better? Spending one hundred percent of your life in material perfection and having a blast, or being conservative, spending just seventy percent on materialism and having a blast, and thirty percent on securing a better future afterlife?<\/p>\n

As a corollary to the above question:<\/p>\n

Which is better? To live in a machined-perfected world, where all things are finely crafted, gleaming and emitting discreet little beeps, or in an earthy, organic world embellished with imperfections, and enlivened by the discreet call of insects?<\/p>\n

Which is better? To drive in a finely crafted race car or race on a thoroughbred with the wind tearing through your hair?<\/p>\n

Which is better? To be a conservationist and leave no footprint on the planet, or strip mine it, make it barren the short while you are here?<\/p>\n

Hey, don\u2019t look at me for answers; I have none! True, I prefer the 70-30 equation, but you please go right ahead and pick up whichever one you feel is right for you, and\u2026 good luck with your chosen path.<\/p>\n

But yes, next time you hear \u2018chalega\u2019 try not to think \u2018oh what a lazy bum.\u2019 Instead, step quietly back. For, he is not a lazy bum, but is actually working hard at maintaining a certain aloofness from his environment. He believes that work binds… that too much attachment, too much involvement with anything on this planet is detrimental to spiritual health, for it binds you to this world, and brings you back to this world. And he does not want that, for he is focused on transmigrating to another, a far superior world. Besides, he is not willing to a giving a hundred percent at work, for he likes to reserve some energy for living his life, practicing his religion, going on his pilgrimage and so on.<\/p>\n

In short, like you, he too is a philosopher and carpe diem-ing<\/em> away like there is no tomorrow. The only difference is, while you believe in making this world a better place with finely crafted goods, and immersing yourself in it with passion, infusing your very being with the aroma of this world, he, quite the contrary, having no illusions about this world, prefers to remain aloof, keeping his attachment to a minimum, maintaining a \u2018chalega\u2019 or \u2018will just about do\u2019 attitude\u2014all, to be able to attain the escape velocity to transmigrate to a better world.<\/p>\n

And oh, guess what: \u2018Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero<\/em>\u2019 may sound all very Latin-y and bohemian, but really it is a stolen Vedic aphorism. The real version is: \u2018ath\u0101to brahma jij\u00f1\u0101s\u0101.<\/em>\u2019 [Vedanta sutra 1.1.1] \u2018Seize the day\u2026 trust not the future, for now\u2014this life\u2014is the time for spiritual realization!\u2019 Indeed, the Vedic literatures open with this very instruction.<\/p>\n

Now is the time for spiritual realization. It\u2019s not the time for bungee jumping, or for smelling the roses, or polishing that knob until you can see the zit on your nose, or making a pit stop at every silly festival in Europe, or drinking yourself silly or fulfilling every stray desire your decadent mind can think off. Seize the day; seize the opportunity of human life\u2026 for another human life may not come by for a thousand years\u2026<\/p>\n

But hey, don\u2019t let it not stop you from making that jump! But do give it a thought\u2026 on your way down, down, down\u2026 consider adding lessons in self-realization to your list… before you hit the ground.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jeevanmukta Das<\/strong><\/p>\n

You doubtfully look at the spurious spare-part the dealer has just shown you and ask, \u2018Chalega kya?\u2019(Will it work?) He\u2019ll reassuringly reply, \u2018hah, hah, chalega, chalega\u2026\u2019 (Yes, yes, it will work)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9743\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}