Learning -The art and science of Learning

The art and science of Learning

A westerner asked me once why you Indians celebrate too many festivals.

He asked me to explain in a way that he can easily understand and convey to his children too "What is Vijayadasami?"

I said it is a sort acknowledging, accepting and celebrating the 'Concept of Learning the art and science of Learning'.

Learning about life in all its splendor and living a life of learning with all its aspects through various symbolic ways and different ways of worship etc.

A sort of Valentine's Day for Learning. The romance of learning.

Vijaya Dasami. 

I have read even one interpretation of Rigveda by a well known scientist and a great follower of Shri Aurobindo wherein he writes Saraswathi refers symbolically to the physiological flow of fluids in brain which contribute to the abilities of perception.

So, let us try to learn humbly from the works of scholars something about brain, mind and human limitation of using them and the limitations of intellect itself to understand, interpret and determine everything concerned with human life as a whole.

The greatest paradox is human mind is capable of exploring, experimenting and executing extraordinary things  and at the same time is also incapable of dealing with very ordinary things.

The following links which I wrote and some reproduced at different times throw light on the various facets of the working of human brain.

http://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2016/05/brains.html?m=0

Learning starts out of curiosity; saunters through imitation and limitation; steps into conscious observation and stops to savor into expressing whatever is learnt through some medium and in some way.

Ironically the very process of excessive spawning of multitude of expressions through Social media throws up enormous variety which extinguish over simplification and over generalization and renders orchestration of mass opinion ineffective.

Though all opinions emanating from or through social media need not be sane or sublime but nonetheless gives room for everyone to express what they want and that is perhaps the very reason for its popularity.

I believe in and relish gathering knowledge and learn  from sources emanating from a wide spectrum of individuals some internationally renowned spiritual leaders, scientists, unsung and unnoticed heroes, because I  follow many things and put them all in the cauldron of desultory hobbies whose contents and ingredients change with every dawn as they have weakness of enjoying many wonderful things that life offers, the many colors and fragrance of multiple splendor of nature like the butterfly that hops from flower to flower and like the butter fly they do play a very important role in evolution of life.

" God is UNITY but always works in VARIETY" RALPH W.EMERSON

The criticisms and suggestions that we encounter may be very nice and useful but unfortunately not implementable in all regions or societies, especially weaning away some of them from  entrenched  religious doctrine oriented traditions and excessive adoration of the past etc.

As proposing and penetration of new ideas and systems becomes tougher in terrains occupied by luddites of various hues and colors like status quo addicts, confirmation bias admirers and venerators of their own past tinged with inherent insecure xenophobic reactions.

But sooner or later the inevitable changes will inundate life as a part of evolution beyond and despite all resistances.

We should welcome articles in the realms of socio-political economics into categories like the unexplored, worth exploring and the unknown to bring in a big pool of idea bank from which the administrators can choose their cup of tea.

Emerging economic perils

Emerging economic perils purveyed through perspectives based on everlasting virtues of hope, faith, love and forgiveness manifesting through passion, compassion and dispassion. "The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history."George Orwell 

I would like to add ' or by preventing them from even getting prepared to face the obvious and looming crisis as it happened in some countries in the recent past.

Modus operandi are:-

1. Making a generation get into identity less 'vacuous inanity or inane vacuum.' or pushing a generation into over emphasized cages of identity veneration.

 2. Irrelevant extrapolation of specific ideologies on multiple domains or indoctrinated fixation fettering any movement ahead.

3. There are multitude of other ways too by which majority of the population and all their energy, time, mind space get struck in a whirl pool of rigorous routine merely to survive the crisis.

4. Then, there are those perennial luddites who actually emerge with a masks of extreme right and extreme left who block many developmental activities as well progress.

These status quo addicts and vested interest lobbies through their tentacles get strength from outside funding flowing towards economically unproductive activities and while the parasites the propaganda production houses, fake news factories and industries that incite protests and opposition, namely the media, unleash all sorts of brainwashing tactics which can trap even well informed and educated folks.

What is the crisis and what different nations are doing?

The crisis is the emerging economic meltdown where things are unpredictably manifesting, unfortunately, in such a manner that a globally acceptable and beneficial standardization and uniform structure is eluding the decision makers and their advisers. However, the hope is only people with practical knowledge and hands on experience at ground level can turn around things provided they get some help from governments. "You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them" Maya Angelou. No nation can thrive on mere trading and financial ( manipulation) services without any other value addition combined with lack of rich natural resources and native skilled man power

Every nation cannot afford to import skilled man power and run their economy.

This may not be not only economically viable but politically unsustainable in the long run.

This is where some countries have moved up because of its sound manufacturing sector and well groomed skilled man power. Some emerging powerful economies too can pitch in provided there is either natural synergy based on national interest marching ahead with economic development oriented humanitarian harmony based social structure leading to a growth of civilization ( as happened in the early part of this century in some countries) or forced dissent free economic development.

I was contemplating on writing on the theme ' Fractured growth and fragile economies' with data and observation.

That is when I noticed that countries blessed with some existing natural resources and/or backed by assets, well developed infrastructure and institutions may survive better.

 At such junctures it is better to be at least informed about the macro developments and possible micro solutions and it is in this context a comprehensive knowledge of, if not all, at least various aspects of life becomes imperative.

This is when Thomax Huxley's famous following quote becomes all the more relevant today as some knowledge, data and certain amount of understanding becomes important for wading through life.

"Try to learn something about everything and everything about something". And my ever favorite quote, " “In the end nothing less than the whole of everything can be the truth of anything at all”- William James

Can any over generalization or homogenizing uniformity or over simplification bring about a common ground to enable a eco system to face such crisis?

It seems more of a utopia rather than a practical solution because whenever a nation or a business or a particular stream of economic ideology is a beneficiary of any global standardization or structure then it is propagated, publicized and even pronounced as a panacea but when the same nation, business etc become a victim then they start dumping the same standardization and structures as unfavorably balanced or unduly favoring some.

 “Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in our lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope.

Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith.

Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore we must be saved by love.

No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as it is from our standpoint. Therefore we must be saved by the final form of love which is forgiveness.” ― Reinhold Niebuhr, The Irony of American History.

Hope, faith, love and forgiveness - all the four words are used to express multitude of emotions sometimes relevantly and at times irrelevantly.

However, the very emotions, ideas that these words conjure up hold great influence and impact on how we relate with people, things, situations and issues.

These four require a composite mixture of passion, compassion and dispassion,

I would like to share an anecdotal reference here . It was during ThinkEdu16 conference in concluding session Sri Sri Ravishankar answered spontaneously very well to Vice Chancellor of a university in very simple terms how to avoid irrational depressions due to high expectations and corresponding disappointment.

He used just three very effective words.

 “He said you definitely need 'Passion' to perform effectively but 'Dispassion' to carry on with shortcomings and failures. He said when you succeed in Passion you enjoy, when you have this 'Dispassion' then you do not 'hate yourself' between these two if you have 'Compassion' then you do not hate or blame others. So, he said you need Passion, Dispassion and Compassion -all the three.”

Joy of living consists in wholesome package of life

But it depends a lot on what parameters and factors the survey uses.

Life is not only about jobs, comforts, money.

Joy of living, the pleasure of leisure, enormous freedom of expression and freedom to pursue any activity not necessarily illegal or immoral but beyond the purview of legal frame work, enough people around to interact without inhibitions, common cultural bonds, happy moments, good and varieties of climatic conditions, less monitoring and less policing, healthy competition and some space for dissent, devoid of suffocating controls, affordable cost of living and available means of living for people from various strata of population  etc.

I think we cannot talk high of a country which is a well constructed glorified mall with some specified animal and bird zones like zoos and bird parks, shopping centers, recreation parks with only a port, trading and high value financial institutions alone.

Often some of these data are interesting, useful and worth comparing to improve on certain aspects.

However,  often these statistics are also like a lady in a swimming suit what they reveal may be interesting but they conceal may be vital.

For example in the name of  security one cannot individual liberty to do what he wants when he wants without harming others and carrying with joy the happiness the way he wants.

Hyper reactive, hyper sensitive and paranoid prevention of certain activities is pathetic. For example one nation a father or mother cannot bathe his or her own child of 4 years. another nation you cannot use mixies to grind anything inside your house ( where the nearest neighbor is 300 meters away) after 6 p.m. So, you cannot have sabhjis and chutni, another country you cannot look into the eyes of a person and talk, another country one cannot eat during a particular month during day time.

Macro impacts micro responses

Macro impacts and impositions can be muted through multitude of  micro responses and vice versa- a sort of logical obverse.

Passive fatalistic acceptance or excessive pessimism are infectious diseases which cause more harm.

Evolutionary aspects emerge irrespective of anything anyone may wish or do or do not do.

However, there are also human interventions and participations.

They manifest in the form of discoveries, inventions, philosophical questioning, debates, rational evaluations and a host of other responses, reactions, renewed volitions, re-volitions etc.

Incidentally, the age of mass violent revolutions have gradually reduced.

The world, as it is today, has enabled more number of people to participate actively and respond ( whether reasonable or not is relative) due to fast transmission of more information and data, thanks to affordable and user- friendly technologies.

Resorting to over philosophizing generalizations or passive fatalistic acceptance that things will eventually even out are tantamount to recoiling into noncommittal cautiousness or a manifestation of a tentativeness bordering on excessive pessimistic dismissal of every change.

This will only embolden the peddlers of misinformation and perpetuate lies and lawlessness or in some cases, petrify the status quo.

Issues no more have just two sides but a multitude of options besides, beyond, above and away from those two sides.

The inevitable strides of human civilization is towards cosmopolitanism, obviously with certain compromises at its own peril.

It was because of active reactions and responses that many barbaric practices in many places and traditions were removed and progresses made.

For example slavery got abolished,  science made progress and social structures got modified to ensure that more people got better off and life became lot more easier and comfortable.

If one were to use more appropriate  modern terminology, these paradigm shifts are the result of entropy, evolution, information explosion, disruptive technologies and mutually beneficial financial and trade disciplines followed based on certain structures agreed upon by most of the stake holders.

All these happened because of responses, and not fatalistic passive acceptance of status quo waiting for some miracle to change things.

George Bernard Shaw said, "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable man adapts the world to himself. All progress depends upon the unreasonable man”

Thomas C. Schelling bring out the impact of multitude of micro actions, beliefs, motives etc on macro behavior in his well researched book 'Micro motives and Macro behavior'

Biggest threat to the world is the terminological terrorism of MSM

Biggest threat to the world is the terminological terrorism of MSM

Biggest threat to the world is not global warming, not terrorism but the terminological terrorism by MSM ( Main Stream Media)

In general, many words, especially that are abstract terms and those used in the realm of emotions, religion and those used in the corridors of political discourse accumulate a huge carapace of connotations over their denotation that this evolutionary trend may end up even burying the original meaning of word.

Coming to specifically socio political terms ( jargons should I say) are so freely used and misused that what is perceived as a lofty terminology is, often, appropriated and/or assigned according to who the beneficiary or the victim.

Now this self appointed champions of verbal industry, the popular media, is engaged in this game that in its enthusiasm to project as mass opinion communicators ( actually playing the role of mass opinion molding factories) are doing a great disservice to society of youth, leaving posterity in confusion through ( nuanced misuse of meanings) that future generation may not be able to understand the meaning of any issue, individual or context as the nicely worded opinions, agendas, prejudices would be masking the facts.

Actually, words do not have ownership nor are there globally accepted authorities to arbitrate on any linguistic debates. So, it has more or less become a free for all, where the seasoned, skilled but crooked media chaps misuse to the hilt through their platforms media houses at the behest of their pay masters to portray as they wish.

The misuse of any platform or medium by a selected few for their vested interests reaches a saturation point may gradually vanish in relevance or relative attention and importance the majority give to it in the long run as has happened to the influence of Roman empire and its sectarian religious edicts in Europe.

So, it is high time that globally media houses exercise some self restraint instead of exaggerations and provocations for sensationalism.

Really civilized and intelligent people must provide hope albeit acknowledging differences and divisions ( not mere exaggerate them to create animosity or use it for peddling victimhood) but generate synergy and synthesis to pick positive aspects to create possibility of unity among at our species, human beings.

Biggest unaddressed silent threat to humanity is not global warming not terrorism but Main Stream Media which dumps so much of negativity in most parts of the world that if any organization can quantify the time, money, energy, resources, negative sociopsychological and emotional impact then the loss would be much more than those collectively caused by wars and natural calamities.

The bandwidth of dissent itself can be much larger and more saner.

DISSENT need not necessarily mean

Disseminating differences disproportionately

Internationalize or internalize for

Sensationalizing and scandalizing to

Social engineer selectively by

Exaggerations and extrapolations through

Nuanced and new found

Terminological terrorism as a trend.

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2018/10/nationalism-and-globalism-manifest.html

Nationalism and Globalism manifest synergy

Vested interest groups and status quo addicts use a team of mass opinion molders to propagate some ideology or agenda through media who have ensured to oversimplify the wide spectrum and great variety of life in all aspects life.

They do this by trying to limit or to curtail human perception through channelize debates into dichotomies of various hues according to the issues, individuals, institutions and domain like Left versus Right, Religion versus Science, Tradition versus Modernism, Capitalism versus Communism and so on .

Why it need not be  'this versus that'? Why can't it be  'this and that'?

Nationalism and Globalism manifest synergy

I would suggest everyone to listen to this excellent talk worth listening and very timely and a must listen .

https://www.ted.com/talks/wanis_kabbaj_how_nationalism_and_globalism_can_coexist?utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_content=button__2018-10-23#t-762412

The  perspective of  viewing the world as two opposing binaries is skewed up and spews out too many disagreements  which end up as 'this versus that' rather 'this and that' which happens  when the perspective becomes broader when binaries become bridges.

Life is not filled with  paradoxes but it is full of  polarity principle which is intrinsically interwoven.

I had written on many topics about this polarity principle.

I have always  believed in proud nationalism and  pursuit of global perspective as inevitable twins.

Here are some of the articles that I have written on

Nationalism, Globalism  and  Polarity principle.

Nationalism

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2014/10/nationalism-be-proud-do-not-hide.html

Why media mafia  spews  venom on nationalism to appropriate a presumptive inflated intellectual image.

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2017/05/why-medias-selective-vulgarism.html

Synergy to become a global citizen

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2017/01/synergy-to-become-global-citizen-and.html

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2016/01/global-citizen-and-worldology-what-are.html

If we observe the evolution of human societies and civilization all positive growth has happened only after or when human beings started recognizing, realizing, reciprocating and respecting people, cultures, things, arts, events happening in their own backyard and also other places and understanding that all are inter related or inter connected with or without liking it and either with willing acceptance or not.

Even every fence defines and demarcates a territory but acts as a connection.

Polarity principle

http://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2015/08/polarity-principle.html

https://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2017/02/21-century-global-citizenship.html

It is all about 'and' not 'versus'

http://contentwriteups.blogspot.com/2016/09/technology-cannot-be-avoided.html

The bandwidth of dissent itself can be much larger and more saner.

DISSENT need not necessarily mean

Disseminating differences disproportionately

Internationalize or internalize for

Sensationalizing and scandalizing to

Social engineer selectively by

Exaggerations and extrapolations through

Nuanced and new found

Terminological terrorism as a trend.

Beyond and besides Controversies, confrontations and conflicts

        Beyond and besides Controversies, confrontations and conflicts

“Partisanship is our great curse. We too readily assume that everything has two sides and that it is our duty to be one or the other”-James Harvey Robinson.

To be or to become or to sound rational one need not necessarily have to get disoriented from cultural moorings or overlook the cultural sensitivities of  others. 

We can always collate and find commonalities  to create a congenial circumstances for both to coexist.

Rationality will ultimately emerge and similarly, regional cultural identities too  will continue.

Somehow , certain features and facts will emerge and establish beyond and besides any planned design or designed plans  and  reveal their role and relevance . 

“ Human material existence is limited by ideas, not stuff. Oil was a contaminant, then it became a fuel”-Paul Romer

Human life  is a transient and passing phenomena. 

“There is no tomorrow. There is only a planet turning on its axis, and a creature given to optimistic fancies”-Robert Brault

Let us make it happy and harmonious without letting either imported ideologies or inherited stupidities to spoil the peace and  harmony and sometimes even the livelihood of some.

Different and ,diametrically  opposite  perspectives  and perceptions too can  be equally  fine  with life  and for humanity as a whole as part of  metamorphosis of evolution unaffected by the narratives  and noises  from any side of the fence. 

“In the end nothing less than the whole of everything can be the truth of anything at all”- William James

“We live in a changing universe, and few things are changing faster than our conception of it”-Timothy Ferris

Economic development and its dimensions

Cat on the wall of ideological institutions cannot develop on economy.

Sir, these types of graphic presentations based on Data crunching are very interestung  useful for interesting  easy reference and nice.

The former CFO of a big firm shared this with me two days back.

While what, unfortunately these charts miss out, and of course, we cannot find fault with them, is the UTILIZATION and DISTRIBUTION of this wealth.

I wrote to him it is these aspect ( UTILIZATION and DISTRIBUTION) which are going to decide the ultimate outcomes of real economic benefits and manifestations of socio-economic comforts and unrest.

INDIA:INDIA has always been and shall continue to be, a vibrant economy, where most of the progress and prosperity are generated by individual entrepreneurs of all sizes and corporate houses.

Though the government owned sectors are huge in size, the proportionate percentage of their contribution to growth is pathetically low.

CHINA: Whereas, in China there is a huge synergy created between the two and that's why whatever others otherwise may or wish to attribute China's development. It has made huge strides in  many relevant economic development indices.

USA: USA has dominated the scenario as a master manager through man management, R&D, MILITARY might, providing good infrastructure,attracting the skill sets across the globe and many other obvious as well as clandestine multi-pronged strategies, scheming and manipulations. Besides all these, whether we like it or not, they have created very good infrastructure for all activities. They did all of that before the advent of protest and outrage epidemic.

No country can fully evolve on economic development indices if it tries to remain as a cat on the wall of ideological institutions. 

Intelligent administration must cleverly channelize (  euphemism for diverting) ideological aspects.

Russia and China of the 20th century did not allow any religious or political ideology to impede or interfere in the progress of economic development. They may have achieved it by some questionable means but the fact is they have achieved them.

Why all of us too

Why  #all of us too

Waste too much of time on negativity and  selectively  resort to either justifying, defending or vilifying some?

Why  #all of us too

Contribute too much  to controversies , conflicts , confrontations and crowding media and social media space

.

Who or what decides or how do we defines what or  who is dirty or clean?

There are dirty aspects in the journey of everything, every aspect and everyone's life?

There are lot of dirty things in global economics, environment and ethical values in present  day politics.

Money that rules the world how much of it is dirty or clean?

Who knows what and how can anyone  define it ?

In the larger scheme of things virtues, vices, failures, mistakes , faults are all part and parcel of  evolution.

Life as whole evolves or emerges matured and civilized by putting aside the dirty past  but building on pride of ancestry; acknowledging problems but  parading  through the present pleasantly; leaving out the luddites but progress with a sense of responsibility towards posterity and move  ahead flamboyantly into the future with contextually relevant values and certain time tested value systems.

Let us not allow anything or anyone that may not synchronize or synergize with our disposition or position to obsessively occupy our mind space or  use as a trade off  for our time and energy and other resources.

It  is a better option that will enable us to move into the territory of peace with positive vibrations rather than sink in the swamp of negative vibes with which we are  surrounded by media space.

Becoming clean is a conscious adaptation or a sign of maturity or a providential lack of  opportunity or a responsible choice.

None of the above are suggestions to remain passive spectator s or impassive indifferent individuals.

React we must to rectify what we feel is not healthy in the interest of  humanity and environment, but hyper reactions and  obsessive occupation with negativity  may be avoided.

If physical violence can harm  the body, then the constant peddling of negativity and victim hood harms both individual and social psychology.  

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