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In the classical novel The Old
Man and the Sea, Santiago – the old man who has endured much pain
already – says, “Keep your head clear and know how to suffer like a man.”
Suffering is an inevitable part of human existence. One of the many lessons
that the Coronavirus disease is teaching us now is the inevitability of
suffering.
“This world of dew is a world of dew,
And yet, and yet…”
18th century haiku master, Kobayashi Issa, sang that. He had
ample reasons to sing sad melodies. His mother died when he was just two. Later
his first son died and before he could overcome that grief his father died of
typhoid fever. And then his second son died followed by the death of his
beloved daughter.
Then he sang about the dewy evanescence of human life and its delights. Life
wasn’t kind to him in spite of his songs. Another of his sons died after he
wrote that poem on the world of dew. Then he was partly paralysed. Then his
wife died in childbirth and that child died soon too.
In due course of time, Kobayashi married again. But it was a failure;
the marriage ended in divorce after a few weeks. Following his third marriage,
his house got burned down. As a consolation he was going to get another child
at the age of 64, but even that consolation was stolen from him. He died before
he could see his much longed-for daughter was born.
Kobayashi’s was a world of dew drops that melted away under the cruel
light of the rising sun. But the sun will keep rising and setting. Dew drops
will keep vanishing without a trace. And yet, and yet - you have to learn to keep smiling, learn to suffer like a man, or a woman.
Kobayashi is not a singular example. There are many people who have gone
through life without having opportunities to smile. Too many, in fact. Right
now we have, in our own country, thousands of people moving towards their homes
from their workplaces because of the raging pandemic. Some are walking hundreds
of miles to reach home. Some of them get scorched by the sun on the way like
Kobayashi’s dew drops. Some are even crushed
under listless trains.
The sun, the train, the pandemic – the list is endless. Life is tragedy
by and large. The comic reliefs in between are our bonuses. We should learn to
suffer like Santiago especially in the days to come.
PS. I’m writing a book on
suffering and its lessons. Not titled yet. It will look into the meaning of
suffering, how religions (particularly Christianity, Islam and Hinduism) view
it, suffering and literature, suffering and psychology + philosophy, ending
with an ordinary secular man’s look at suffering. Anyone who wishes to contribute
to it with anecdotes, suggestions, questions, etc may contact me at tgmatheikal@gmail.com
Life is indeed a complex pool of expectations and their fallibility with transient promises of attainment like dews of the dawn...your contributions (as a new reader to your pages) as I find always contain ripples of your deep thoughts that have relevance to the evolution of human relationships confined in the tussle of deceptive social paradigm, dwarfed humanity and the conceited social reactions....and it hits where it should..."how many times can a man turn his head, and, that he just doesn't see"...as Dylan wrote...I get enriched by the values it carries....my regards
ReplyDeleteThank you, friend, for such encouraging words. I love that Dylan song. Once upon a time it was a favourite song of mine. Even today I find myself humming it occasionally.
DeleteThe life is harsh...it takes us indeed through lots of trial...yet, it holds the pearl so passionately secreted within its hard shell...the comfort and delight lie far off...as the great poet you wrote about stands as an outstanding example of it...
ReplyDeleteYour way of presenting thing captivates the readers so much that in the first read one loses only in its melody, and has to reread to understand the content...it is so enriching