"Life has no purpose" -and that is exciting !

I know it is a bold, counter-intuitive statement but reading this article would be worth it and may create a small impact in understanding.

Does life has inherent purpose? Is there a God that gives us purpose?
Is there any meaning to life? What it means to be alive in this universe? 

Let's dive in- What happens when you open floodgate? water just flows, you have no control on how it moves and where it goes, it just flows and finds its way. Though some water will be stuck in potholes or a pound along the way but rest will keep flowing. Origin of life and origin of universe follow similar approach. "Why" you ask?, lets explore..

Evolution is a fact with lots of evidence. It explains why animals and plants are so good at surviving in their environments, the places where they live. What it means is that a species changes over time and can even split in two new species. How one species evolved as human.  Modern species are a result of factors like survival of fittest, natural selection and gene mutation. But it is incredibly slow and takes million of years to see any change.

If you are alive today that means your 100 million forefathers all the way up to a fish (yes fish was our forefather) everyone of them survived successfully and all mutations were successful. All unsuccessful could not make it to today. So, it is often said that we are living in a very very special time. We were lucky every-time w.r.t. evolution and same goes for creation of the universe (which I will try to present later). I would argue that there is no luck but would agree that we live in a special time. Because this is the only time when we are alive and able to think, understand and appreciate the grandiosity. Rest of the times we were dead.

Single cell life started on earth as soon as it cooled down in habitable zone to a favorable temperature around 3.5 billion years ago, with most abundant elements in universe hydrogen, oxygen, carbon. More than 99 percent of all species that ever lived on Earth are estimated to be extinct and humans are just one of remaining. Humans evolved from apes which started only 10 million years ago.

To give prospective, It takes just 100,000 years to fully develop an eye. Evolution is so slow and full of numerous trial and errors that it took 3.5 billion years to make first human that can survive. Here, time lapse is so humongous and counter-intuitive to fathom. Modern species are evolved into beautiful and highly functional design but many still carry bad design as long as it doesn't hinder in their survival. There are numerous evidence to support the same. Our existence is no luck. Gene tried all kind of mutations and some sequence of mutations lead to humans and others could not survive or did survive as other species.

So, evolution just flows and on the way it always creates new species some of them survive and some don't.

Evolution of the Universe:

We always wondered why universe is so fine tuned as the way it is. who did this? It is exactly the same way we use to wonder about humans, why they are so intelligently designed and why do they exists?
Now, it is easy to understand evolution because all evidence point to one and only one direction i.e. it is one of many products of evolution. Highly probable universe evolved the same way and many "mutations" have already happened in other universes and may be happening in some other universes which may or may not survive. This would mean we live in a multi-verse.
A beautiful analogy would be: In a superconductor the current experience no resistance and travel forever. It just happens that in this universe photons experience no resistance and travel forever. It is likely that our universe is some sort of superconductor for electromagnetic waves of photons. Others may have different properties.

Space-Time:
It is highly probable that it is just our experience of time that flows. We feel the flow of time in the space-time we live in. This experience breaks-down when we are looking at an object near black-hole as we see time passing very slow for that object. Time slows down when you travel in your day-to-day life too but it is insignificant. This effect magnifies when you travel at high speed like our satellites. And 'yes' our satellites experience significant time slow down everyday and they have to adjust their atomic clocks often. If they don't, GPS on our cell phones will not work accurately and you will see accidents all around.

There is so much more to write about but in conclusion:
There were billions of years before us and infinite universes other than ours.
There will be billions of years after us and infinite universes other than ours.
We just happen to live in a time where one of the universe just happen to sustain so long and create elements like carbon, hydrogen, oxygen etc. Which then in favorable conditions on earth reacted for over very long time and happen to create a single cell which represented first sign of life. This flow went for billion of years and out of numerous combinations just happen to develop a brain which then asked this question: "Why we are here?"



Why no inherent purpose is exciting?:
A single cell in itself is highly complex form. And there are more than trillion of them conspiring together to make a functional body which can run, eat , think, care, create art, create music and create the model of the whole universe in a small organ called brain..."What an amazing body to live in !!"

It is us who gives meaning to the universe which otherwise flows meaningless. We can setup new purposes of our own and thus introduce a new kind of purpose in the universe which it never had before. So, go out and love, care for others, do poetry, do music, do art, do science and find a purpose of your own coz thats what makes us human.


--
Nikhil Aggarwal

P.S.
An interesting cross-roads of poetry and science. When, Javed Akhter vividly describes time and
Paul Davies describing Einsteinian understanding of time.
Link:
https://youtu.be/yID6bPTpcQo?t=769
https://youtu.be/G8FnFjqiAWs?t=2730

It suggests time is stationary and we just feel intervals of time. Like a youtube video, everything is already there. There is no birth and no death happening in actor's life and there is no event that occurs only once, everything is happening and available all the time.

Interesting famous arguments:
1. Chimpanzees and humans differ by only 2% in DNA and we consider them as dumb and cant talk to them. May be there is some Alien life which is just 2% better DNA than us. For them we would be too dumb to talk to.

2. Newton believed apples falls because of gravity but Einstein turned it over and proposed that actually earth falls to apple. Analogy would be in a roller coaster we feel force similar to gravity but it is the roller coaster which moves.

3. Time started as a side effect of big-bang. There was no time before that. So there is no question of someone creating a universe, there was no time to create a universe.
4. If God created the universe then who created God?

'India's Daughter' BBC documentary: India with an unprecedented opportunity, once again:

Protesters assemble at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi on Saturday, 22nd December, during a protest to demand justice for the gang rape victim.

In spite of initially granting permission for shooting of documentary on Delhi gang rape convicts, Indian authorities in the end has buried their heads in sand.
If you don't have solutions..'ban' the question, unfortunately thats the stand taken by Indian Govt.
And I fear that similar stand has been taken by many other counties around the world which won't even allow such documentaries to start off at first place.
Partly to keep a 'good image' among rest of the world and avoid any sanctions.

But here is an opportunity and I strongly believe that BBC documentary should be seen by every person. It can give an understanding on what are the trigger thoughts which manifest to such heinous crime and to introspect if 'you are thinking like a rapist'.

Even this is not the complete picture, around 70% of women in India are victims of domestic violence, according to former Union minister for Women and Child Development which is unaccounted for and untapped in this documentary.

There is no doubt that the change in decision to ban the documentary will backfire to India as a nation. Many countries will be quick to moral police India on this decision, which probably will in turn expose their hypocrisy but lets keep it aside. I hope other countries instead of pointing fingers on India will rather introspect and allow similar reports in their backyard too.
Such reports are a mirror to society which should be shown to the very society to contemplate and correct its course of action. Even though there are numerous research papers on similar topic but such documentaries reach to masses and are very effective to catch the imagination of public.

The root cause of such crime always boils down to education and gender equality, which is undeniably a constant struggle in every society on the planet. But there is a third angle that is self-realization and awareness which is immensely effective too.
Thats why I would say India has an unprecedented opportunity to trigger off a wider debate on this topic. And I hope that introspection and honest reflection would be given more importance than 'good image' in every society.

M.L. Sharma Defence Lawyer Delhi Gang case

========================================================================

Full documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Tfaurfg7EQ

Note: Just a food for thoughts, please excuse glitches.

Arvind Kejriwal: Social and Political Romanticism

For him it will be apt to say:                     

मझधारो मे नाव छोड़ दू, घर से निकलू तो छाव छोड़ दू !

हार जीत तो अलग बात है, मैं क्यू अपना दाव छोड़ दू !!

Within one year, without even stepping into the parliament he has already infused romanticism in politics by achieving quite a few milestones, viz:

1) By setting unprecedented standards of transparency in funding of any political party. He was able to trigger a nationwide debate on funding of other major political parties of the county where over 80% of money is pure unaccounted cash (link). That is considered to the be birth-place of corruption.

2) Implementing long awaited crucial rule of nobel politics i.e. clean politicians. That inspired the 2 biggest parties in india to try to field cleaner candidates at-least in Delhi. Best example would be replacing the face of the party from Vijay Goel to cleaner Harshvardhan by BJP at 11th hour in an unprecedented way.

In absence of any such challenge in Rajasthan much more tainted people than Delhi have been given tickets by both major parties.

3) Showcasing one the most fearless face of the country, Arvind Kejriwal brought back the story of Robert Vadra onto the table. Many top journalists accept that they were afraid to do it. The fallout of this episode resulted in freedom from the fear of consequences.

4) He also broke the conception that the news community is dependent on media houses, by stating that "Aam Aadmi is the Media". 

5) He successfully shifted the focus of regional and national political discourse from caste and religion based to anti-corruption.

6) Above all, he exposed the conspiracy of silence between rival political parties by exposing the corruption, nepotism and their connivance in scams. etc.
7) He gave a positive direction to the cynicism in public towards political system. His greatest acievement is to bring a common man out of their drwaing room and participate in politics.

Thus he proved himself not as an alternate in politics but an alternative politics.

We can explore and scrutinize his impact further with a whole range of questions condensed into three words “Why Arvind Kejriwal ?”

Well as many are aware he is an IIT graduate, social activist and a former Joint Commissioner in the Income Tax Department who quit his job to pursue his romantic ideals in social reforms.

During the initial phase of his activism soon he realized that the brazen corruption of high and mighty may grab headlines but it is the ubiquity of everyday corruption that weighs heaviest and demoralizes the society. To top it there is a complete information vacuum between govt and the public. This ultimately causes people to vote on basis of caste, creed, religion and perception.

He is one of the key person because of whom, RTI (Right to Information) in Delhi is possible today. His years of relentless struggle has made RTI the means to empower the Citizens.RTI has helped to bring public awareness and fix accountability to a certain extent into the system. Without it one cannot imagine how people can get access to such information which is valuable for them and the society.

With this inception he had triggered a movement for a truthful and ethical society. That is because an individual will keep his conduct honest before questioning other’s honesty. It should happen in a country where even a beggar pays tax.

Propelling common people to invoke the Act, he streamlined the Public Distribution System (PDS) in Delhi where information obtained under the RTI revealed that the shopkeepers and food grain officers siphoned off 87 percent of wheat and 94 percent of rice meant for the poor Details. This highlighted the importance of policy making by exposing how a bad policy by govt. made thousands of people corrupt in a single stroke.

Very few people know that Jan Lokpal as a public movement was the brainchild of Arvind Kejriwal. On the evening of an ordinary day he called up Kiran bedi and laid the foundation of the movement. This then joined by Manish Sisodia and Kumar Viswas. But clearly in India you need a Gandhian face for any movement to reach to the very last person. But to his honest intentions he was accompanied by Anna Hazare who is also the popular socialist and became the Gandhian face of the movement.

Many conspiracy theories emerged during the movement and the one topped the list says ‘most people haven’t read Jan Lokpal bill but support it so it could be dangerous’. That still prevails in some form for his Aam Aadmi party.

It is true that many people didn’t read Jan Lokpal bill and his idea of Swaraj in detail, but it is extremely difficult to put forth a policy in public for social debate, even if one of your opponent/supporter find a major flow that will derail your whole movement. Of Course the best way is to read and research oneself but just being cynical every time is not a very good way out.

Why Arvind Kejriwal ?, is able to take on the high and mighty of this country ? 

In addition of being an intellectual, strategist and champion of facing political heat in his previous missions. Initially as an activist, he had the immunity of being selfless and was able to galvanize large number of people out of their drawing room. But the real revolt started after the failure of the Anna movement. He changed his tactics and went for an all out attack on the upper echelons of the Indian Society. Providing shoulder to many others to shoot from who were otherwise afraid of the consequences.

Why Arvind Kejriwal ?, why he is the only one doing this, is there no one else ?

It has been proven time and again that there are individuals who bring changes to the society, good or bad. There are a number of examples where an individual’s determination and offbeat thought triggered a chain reaction as they captured imagination of masses to bring fundamental changes in the system and the society. 

Is he the only one ? No, there is a Kejriwal in every one of us, but he is top of us and we are somewhere at the bottom uncomfortable and unable to rise our heads.

In conclusion, it can be proposed that this is a historical path we are walking through. taking the stake to poorest of poor and creating a sense of entitlement. This is one of the most romantic and adventurous era of Indian history. The anti-corruption movement has swung the national mood from pessimism to optimism. His party has evolved as a revolution from a national movement which fired the imagination of people much like the JP movement of 70’s.

Many people say there is negativity spreading but they are the ones who are sitting in their five star suites unaware of the plight of the common man. He has proved himself to be a seasoned activist and a champion of politics. He has taken on the most powerfully vested interests in Indian politics and kept at bay government agencies which are conspiring to invalidate his efforts.

To end this article I have to go back to the beginning of this spark by quoting an excerpt from his book Swaraj:

“In July 2008, the then U.P. government had to prove its majority on the floor of the assembly. MLA’s were being bought and sold. Certain T.V. channels showed these MLA’s accepting money openly. Those video scenes gave me a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. If MLA’s could be sold like this then what is the value of our vote. Today the leaders are buying the legislators of the country to save their party. Tomorrow the same legislators could be bought by any other country like America or Pakistan. It is possible that such a thing is happening, but who knows. This thought sent tremors of terror through my mind and body.” read more.

--

Thanks,

Nikhil Aggarwal

References:

Arvind Kejriwal’s Quest for Change

Swaraj- book

Arvind kejriwal wiki

Untouchables in India -gfiles

Arvind kejriwal biography

Will Anna’s vision survive without Kejriwal’s action?

Rationale behind Hindu Idols as juristic person

The existence of Hindu idol as juristic person capable of having rights and discharging duties through sevakars were established in the court of law as early as 1925.

Weird as it may sound, this very statement opens up a Pandora’s box and you suddenly see a variety of questions sticking their head out.

Does it hold Hindu Idols simply a Human being?

Whether these judgments denigrate Hinduism and Hindu Idols?

Can the suits and claims be filed against Hindu Idols?

Can the individuals destroying the copies of mythology be convicted for murder?

A number of judgments answer most of the queries. Before discussing the judgment in detail, let me try to give you a concise view to understand them better.

As per Common law, which is the basis of Western law system, also applied in India since the British time, there are two persons: Natural and Legal. Natural persons are human beings, while Legal (juristic) persons are any beings or things or objects that are treated as persons by law. For legal purposes, they are given the similar treatment as that to the human beings.

The most apt or satisfactory definition of legal personality is given by Salmond. According to him, legal personality is the capacity for entering into legal relationships. On elaborating this, further a person would be said to be in legal capacity if he can hold property in his name, sue and be sued in the court of law.

Every judgment seems to eulogize Hinduism and its holy scripture and there is hardly any derogatory remark towards them.

Punishment for murder cannot be awarded for destroying scriptures because murder means killing of a human being by a human being. Besides, Hindu Gods, being immortal, can neither be killed nor does they die.

Furthermore, the rationale behind giving Hindu idols a juristic personality is best explained by Ganpathi Iyer in his valuable treatise on “Hindu and Mahomedan Endowments”.  He had this to say in regard to the legal status of an idol in, Hindu law:

“The ascription of a legal personality to the deity supposed to be residing in the image meets with all, practical purposes. The deity can be said to possess property only in an ideal sense and the theory is, therefore, not complete unless that legal personality is linked to a natural person.”

This proposition became the key constituent in the famous Allahabad High Court’s verdict in the Ayodhya case (link) given the eventual outcome of this long-drawn dispute, it was Deoki Nandan Agarwal, whose efforts from 1989, when he became the “next friend”, have in many ways clinched the issue in favor of lord Ram and Ram Janmabhoomi.

Some historic Judgments:

●      Hindu Deity as a Juristic Person (Vidya Varuthi Thirthia Swamigal v. Baluswami Ayyar AIR 1922)

●      Mosque and Sikh Scripture as Juristic Person(Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Amritsar v. Som Nath Dass and others delivered on March 29, 2000)

These judgments outline the belief that nothing in Islam’s religious structure can be “identified” to a form or a person. Not even the Prophet Mohammad. So, the courts seem to have come to the conclusion that the religious context does not warrant a Juristic Person argument in Islam. Sikh theology and Hindu theology and religious strictures differ. Although, Guru Nanak did affirm the centrality of Formless as the worshippable God, Guru Gobind added a twist by installing Sri Guru Granth Sahib as a worshippable Guru, as a true representative of God.

Furthermore, It would be correct to say that if we don’t give idols a juristic personality then there would be lot of practical difficulties in the matters of taxation and allotment of land as well as on the subject to alienation of property.

In conclusion, from the various case laws and jurist writings, it has become clear that an idol is treated as juristic person that is capable of having rights and duties. The Idol has always enjoyed a good position in Hindu Mythology. Hindu Law recognizes Hindu idol as a juridical subject being capable in law of holding property by reason of the Hindu Shastras following the status of a legal person in the same way as that of a natural person. It is not a particular image, which is a juridical person, but it is a particular bent of mind, which consecrates the image. The reasons behind personifying it as a juristic person are many such as taxation purposes, assessment purposes, representation in a suit to defeat illegal claims. “The Hindu Law, like the Roman Law and those derived from it, recognizes not only incorporate bodies with rights of property vested in the corporation apart from its individual members but other juridical personality.

--

Nikhil Aggarwal

instance !

aloof and without a roof !