Stray Thoughts of Dr. Y. V. Rao-1
Dr.
Yerneni Venkateswara Rao
M.Sc., Ph. D
Retired Principal
GUDIVADA- A.P
yernenivrao@gmail.com
B1-115
Not to be able to live according to one’s
own cherishes values is a tragedy. A worse tragedy however, is to suddenly find
that the values one has been holding all the while to be self-evident, sacrosanct and inviolable
are after all illusory or mistaken, and , impliedly , that the certitudes of
the past are just not there anymore. Yet, paradoxically, the very ability to
perceive the hollowness of one’s erstwhile values and the courage to stare
truth in the face can turn the tragedy into a triumph by at once, setting one
on the path of truth lighted by the right values for a perspicacious mind with
steadfast adherence to truth knows no other path.
But
by far, the worst possible tragedy, worse even than death is to continue to
live in the shadow of the same values even after knowing that they are phony
and spurious , and to hang on to the same picture of the world even after
discovering that it is based on monstrous lies and moribund ideologies.
Surprisingly, people who do so either out of reluctance to move out of the cosy
comfort of the cocoon built around the old values or out of fear of venturing
forth into the uncertain real of the emerging new world view or both are
legion.
B1-116
Achieving celebrity status is like mounting
a tread mill with no option to dismount until death. One has to keep running
faster and faster to stay where one is. No earth shaking enterprise after all,
yet so alluring!
B1-117
A fool and his money are soon parted for,
he is apt to mistake the greedy toadies gravitating towards him for the much
needed well wishers to be reached out to and sought after by him.
B1-118
Consistent reliance on one’s deeds rather
than words to do one’s talking, which the former know how to do best is a true
mark of maturity.
B1-119
A wise man is aware of his weaknesses and
vulnerabilities and works on them to mitigate their negative impact on his
character whereas a fool, on the one hand is busy digging up from imagination,
non-existent strengths and virtues and a rascal on the other hand makes
a virtue of every blemish and inadequacy in his character with such
passion and devotion as are unknown to either the wise one or the fool and each
goes about proclaiming his fictitious account of himself to the wide world.
B1-120
Career caters to greed masquerading as need
relentlessly pushing its unfortunate victim up and up until he finally reaches
a state of total alienation from his near and dear ones and even his own
environment, moral as well as material, with no exit anywhere in sight. The
extent of his success getting reflected in how alone, isolated and alienated he
is while calling is a way of life, a self fulfilling mission, a need based
activity in the service of both man and community and a stabilizing process,
stabilizing oneself as well as one’s community and paving the way for the
ultimate integration of the self into the very web of life.
B1-121
What one is naturally, one need not
proclaim himself to be (that) but should demonstrate through one’s conduct and
character. A proclamation of one’s state of mind/being involves a doubt and a need for confirmation.
Repeated declarations like ‘I am fine’ , ‘I am great’, ‘I am good’ etc are
supposed to reflect positive thinking .If they really do, does it mean that
positive thinking is so pathetically vulnerable as to need such periodic
reassurances and reaffirmations for its survival and sustenance?
B1-122
Mental states are too personal to be
proclaimed to the world from rooftops just as privacy is too precious to be
paraded in the streets , sashayed on the catwalk or ramp, or exhibited on the
stage; they should get reflected in one’s mien and manner.
B1-123
One need not streak in the streets to draw
public attention to oneself but some of our wily politicians obviously think
otherwise and act accordingly inside and outside the State Legislatures and
Parliament, the last sanctuaries of democratic decencies and values, day in and
day out to the utter dismay and shame of every civilized soul in this country.
One may not expect them to live up to Utopian or exasperatingly exacting or
exceedingly high standards of excellence or rectitude but certainly, one
can/has a right to expect them to appreciate that such standards do indeed
exist and pay heed to them now and then , just for a change from their
disgustingly disgraceful routine.
B1-124
However hard one strives, one cannot
prevent certain events from happening; the wise know how to limit the damage
and adapt to the altered reality and move on.
B1-125
It is a bad situation if words do all the
talking leaving no scope for deeds/ actions which, in fact should speak louder
than words; it is far worse if they are in perpetual conflict with each other.
B1-126
Context is too important to be overlooked
in any situation. So obviously crucial is it to some, yet, as obviously
irrelevant or redundant does it appear to be to some others in evaluating any
issue under scrutiny. It illuminates the issue and puts it in its proper
perspective for a precise assessment of its worth, for the benefit of the
former while to the latter, usually a passionate lot , it shows the issue for
what it is worth , an insignificant detail in a broad picture, to their utter
dismay and consternation, for it robs them of their raison d’etre by divesting
them of their prized possession , namely the issue viewed out of context with
all its incendiary potential and explosive possibilities. On all such
occasions, they find themselves utterly lost for issues. Either way , it is a
boon to the wise for, it helps in discriminating between what is worthy and
what is unworthy in life and in steering clear of the emotional whirlpools and intellectual
booby traps.
More importantly, facts or events taken out of context may mean any
number of different things that may have little or no resemblance to what they
actually signify. Decontextualized facts easily lend themselves to be
interpreted differently by different people depending on their personal
predilections rather than on the truth about what really happened or
transpired. Worse is the case where facts are deliberately embedded in a alien
context when they get so badly distorted that they not only misrepresent truth
but present a wholly unfounded fantasy as hard reality with all the attendant
consequences—a subterfuge resorted to by unscrupulous people when confronted
with inconvenient and hence, unacceptable facts.
Facts and context are interdependent and are in interactive unity just
as any organism and its environment are.
B1-127
A man is great in proportion to his ability
to turn every vulnerability in his character into a source of strength and
every challenge in life into an opportunity for advancement, personal as well
as usual.
B1-128
The more crushing the burden of failure in
one’s home front, the more pressing will be the need for proving oneself in the
world outside; but strangely, the greater the external success appears to be,
the more devastating the agony of domestic failure will become.
B1- 129
Can there be a worse hell for anyone than
his own family, in which every member is aware of his inadequacies and
vulnerabilities , and what is worse/more, makes it a point to dilate on them in
season and out of season? Oh, yes, a family, passionately preoccupied with any
and every other triviality in the world except the fact of his being/ existence
can be one such.
B1-130
Context illumines and highlights issues.
When the illumination is right , it adds clarity to the issue but when it is
excessive , it obscures the issue from view altogether. Context, like a person’s
attire, should present facts as they are, no more, no less.
That’s why it is said that secretaries clarify issues by filling in the
background so that the foreground goes underground.
(To be continued )
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