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DAY 807 Amitabh Bachchan Blog
There is an old and very prominent saying in Hindi -
मुरख को सम्झावाते , ज्ञान गाँठ हो जाये ,
कोयला होय न ऊजला, सौ मन साबुन खाए
murakh ko samjhavate, gyan gaanth ho jaye,
koyala hoye na ujala, sau man saabun khaye
Just as rubbing a 100 tons of soap over coal is not going to change its color to white, spending your brain in trying to teach something intelligent to a fool is a waste.
Being foolish has always been looked upon as being not good. But if I were to say that fools were the ‘gurus’ of the intelligentsia, it may come as a big surprise to you.
Truth is, that the amount of knowledge an intelligent person learns from a fool, the fool is unable to do that with the intelligent.
The more we research and learn about fools, the more we realize how much we are not in knowledge of our own knowledge. Because the lack of knowledge and foolishness of others keeps reminding us of what we should or should not do.
The experience of learning from a foolish experience can become the best experience of our life. If our experiences are not correct, our decisions will never be correct.
We are all capable of being careless and making mistakes. We have all at some time or the other, dived deep into the well of foolishness. To swim out of that situation is the intelligent thing to do. To drown in it is nothing short of committing suicide.
I shall never urge you to step out in search of a fool and make him your ‘guru’, but yes if there is lack of knowledge and foolishness in some, then searching for a lesson or a learning hidden within it is the preferred intelligent thing to do.
There may be an assumption immediately from some, that there has been a rather foolish encounter that I may have had with some foolish people. No I have not. And that certainly is not the basis for this diatribe. I doubt if there is any sane person on earth that may not have had to deal with either a fool or a foolish situation at any point in their lives. It is I believe a normal circumstance. There are times when you will and do encounter such individuals and situations. But what is really important is whether we learn something from that or succumb to it.
Dealing with fools is an art and I envy the people that have mastered the art of doing so. It is not to say that the fool is anathema to society. Many a fool has prospered by remaining one. The court jester in old world monarchy is a renowned figure. Shakespeare’s plays have given the jester a prominent place beside the King and his Kingdom. They have often been portrayed as the eyes and ears of the monarch. Often too have they been given to possess the most amount of wisdom. In the circus too, it is the clown that is the most talented acrobat and performer. This very aspect has been the greatest irony of the ‘big tent’. I have always believed the Russian Circus to be the best in the world and the performances that I have personally witnessed of it have always highlighted the clown as being the star of the evening.
I cannot remember the name now ( was it Pupolov the clown ; will the Russians please help me out on this ) but he was the clown that was the star attraction of the event. When he passed away there was national mourning in the country. That was the level of his importance and worth.
I wonder why I talk about fools today. It certainly is not the effect of the ‘bandh’. Many of the FmXt that live in the West have wondered what a ‘bandh’ is. ‘Bandh’ literally means ‘close’. There has been a National call for a Bandh by all the opposition parties to draw attention to the price hikes that have recently been introduced by the Government. It is like an entire country on strike. Cities shut down. Nothing moves, nobody goes to work, nobody steps out of their homes. No cars no taxis no rickshaws no trains no flights, nothing moves. It is a way of protest. Sadly some arson takes place too when there is endeavor by those that do not believe in the strike to resume normalcy. Public property is destroyed and damaged by angry crowds partaking in this act. It is therefore advised by all to remain indoors.
In the country today, the ‘bandh’ can be termed to have been successful. Most important cities shut and no one moved on the streets. There was some report of violence too from a few areas. Whereas the protest was against price rise and costs of living going up, the people that suffered the most were the daily wage earners and the poor that work everyday for their bread and butter. When the city shuts, their mode of earning shuts too.
For me then, the presence of this great metropolis suddenly devoid of sound and hustle was eerie. The streets were empty and not a sound was heard. But as has been the norm, after a few early hours the street cricket championships erupt. The deserted roads and highways and streets become the playing pitches for an impromptu game of cricket. And a lot of serious attention is given by the kids that come out and play. Many a great player in our national team have started their career in this fashion.
For us though it was time to connect and talk and discuss and watch movies. ‘The Aviator’ was picked since I had not seen it and enjoyed. The film was brilliant in its presentation. Catching the period of the time must have been the toughest job. Performances were all great. Leonardo di Caprio as Howard Hughes was fantastic as was the gentleman that played the role of the senator. There were patches of heavy rain in the evening and the World Cup matches were sorely missed. Another day to go before we come back to them. And so till then ..
Good night !
And for all the Sikhs, there was the occasion of ‘Guru parabh for the 6th Guru’ today. Our wishes and best always ..
Amitabh Bachchan
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