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Do I Dare?




Do I dare
Disturb the universe?

Do I dare disturb the power (god/politician/manager/baba/…) over me?  T. S. Eliot’s Prufrock asked that question in the poem, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.

Prufrock’s problem was his inability to be either damned or saved.  If you are damned you belong to the group of those who are counted out by the people in power.  If you are saved you are in the power ring.  Eliot’s Prufrock refused to belong in either of the places.  Probably, he was incapable of understanding the politics of the mediocre.

What did Prufrock see in his world?  “One-night cheap hotels.”  “A face to meet the faces you meet.”…  And people who make the rules for that world.  The world of masks.

Ultimately, it is about what kind of a world you are living in.  Who rules it?  Who manages it?  Who makes the rules?

Ultimately, it is about POWER. 

Might makes right.  In the jungle.

Knowledge is power.  Among the knowledgeable people. Among the civilised people.

Who is in power really?  Might or knowledge?  Neither. 

A small group who captures the power through certain manipulations.

It need not be a religious minority.  It need not be a linguistic minority.  It need not be a cultural minority.

It is the politics of convenience. 

Who brings me the maximum benefits here and now?  He/She is my ally.

The world is ridiculous.

Alliances keep changing. 

Where lies the true leader?  The real Baba?  The real Swami?

If you dare, you will be the Baba. 

If you dare, you will the Swami, the Guru, the Messiah.

No one will dictate terms. IF YOU DARE.

Do I Dare?





Comments

  1. "Who is in power really? Might or knowledge? Neither." - This is a Kafka sentiment!

    RE

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  2. We are not assertive. When someone is aggressive we become timid and we become aggressive infront of others, perhaps to overcome our inadequacy or to get over the feeling that we have been bullied by someone else. If we don't become assertive all the time, people try to dictate terms. One needs to dare to stand up to his own convictions. I think daring is a way of life.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The lack of assertiveness has been the problem with Indians for centuries. We are a people who follow the "politics of convenience." Thanks for stating that. Our fate is to be bullied. Gandhi said that dictators and bullies ride over people with no spine.

      Delete

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