The Reality Of Perceptions
While on the subject of perceptions, it is relevant to recall the well-known, but pertinent, old parable that originated in the Indian subcontinent, of the six blind men and an elephant, each man wanting to know what an elephant looks like. The reason why every one of them had a different perception was because each of them touched a different part of the elephant. The story provides realistic insights into the phenomenon of the relative opaqueness, or the inexpressible nature, of truth. Subjective experiences can be true, but are inherently limited, by the failure of accounting for other truths which are equally valid about the same experience. Truth, in other words, is relative to one’s own perspective and one should always respect the opinions of others
The relative might, and importance, of some countries, as perceived by others, also provides interesting insights. Two extremely humorous illustrations, of such perceptions, are provided in the movies, the ‘Mouse that Roared’ and ‘Romanoff and Juliet’. In the former, the Duchy of Grand Fenwick, a small country in the French Alpine region, has the temerity to declare war against mighty America, when its sole export product, a wine, is threatened with extinction by competition from an American counterpart. In the latter, a completely insignificant, and small, nation, Concordia finds itself in the position of being courted by the two Super Powers, merely because it is in a position to break a continuing deadlock between them, about voting on the issue of disarmament.
Perceptions are also largely subjective in nature. An uncle of mine once visited the house of a prospective bride-to-be, accompanied by his parents, relatives and some friends. The occasion was the customary visit, which is arranged under parental guidance to see whether the proposed alliance is feasible. Various factors are looked at by both sides, such as the boy and the girl liking each other, as also astrological and financial considerations. Those who accompanied my uncle felt that the girl was only moderately good-looking. My uncle, however, invited his mother to look at the girl through his eyes. Needless to say, the match got fixed, and my uncle and aunt lived happily ever after. On the other hand, one has seen so many cases, where love at first sight, having taken place based entirely on mutual physical attraction, resulted in marriages which proved to be spectacularly disastrous. What is sauce for the goose, obviously, is not sauce for the gander!
It is not only the perceptions, of the qualities of others, that one can be mistaken. There can be such a thing as a mistaken perception of one’s own strengths, and weaknesses, too. In the Hindu Epic Ramayana, for example, Hanuman, the Monkey God, and the most devoted disciple of Lord Rama, is once cursed by Sages to lose awareness of his abilities, until reminded by someone. That is why Jambava, the King of Bears, has to remind Hanuman of his strength to encourage him to leap across the ocean, to land in Lanka, to search for Sita Mata, who has been abducted by the Demon King Ravana.
One also finds, in the same Epic, a telling illustration of how being ignorant of one’s own weaknesses can lead to disaster. On the one hand, Ravana, the King of Lanka, is a master of the sciences, a great devotee of Lord Shiva, an extraordinary maestro of the musical instrument veena, a courageous warrior, a scholar of the Vedas and a good ruler of the Kingdom. It is his inability to overcome the shortcomings in his character, represented by his ten heads, such as an inflated ego, uncontrollable anger, lust, pride, and envy, that led to the ill-advised abduction of Sita and, eventually, death at the hands of Lord Rama.
It is as important, Ramayana teaches us, to be aware of one’s strength, and put it to use in noble causes, as it is to be conscious of one’s weaknesses, and avoid succumbing to the temptations they offer.
It is precisely in this context, that I often quote, the expression from a beautiful poem, composed by the Bard of the Telugu speaking people, Balantrapu Rajanikanta Rao. ‘Rajani’, as he was known fondly by friends and relatives, a multifaceted personality built much in the mood of a modern day, Leonardo da Vinci or Michelangelo. Composer, playwright, actor, crooner and a teacher of classical as well as light music, Rajani was indeed a colossus who strode across the canvas of Telugu culture for over three decades. Among many things, he will be remembered for composing ‘Mrogimpu Jayabheri’, first Telugu song ever to be broadcast in independent India on the midnight of 15 August 1947, following the famous speech of Jawaharlal Nehru, “Our Tryst with Destiny.” The expression occurs in the poem, ‘Omkara Parivritham Viswam’, and goes “Sankalpa Parimitham Drisyam”, or, freely translated, that what the eyes perceive is, in essence, what the mind has determined to visualise. One can, in other words, become whatever one wants to be, given the courage to imagine a sufficiently challenging destination.
The ability to set oneself challenging goals should, however, not degenerate into the tendency to suffer from delusions. There is, however, no harm in innocently imagining oneself in a position of great power and wealth, only for the temporary illusion of enjoyment it provides. For example, the lyrics of the song, immortal “Mera Joota Hai Japani”, in the legendary blockbuster movie, ‘Shri 420’, of the 1950s, go at one point as follows: “Honge Raaje Rajkunwar Hum, Bigde Dil Shehzaade; Hum Singhasan Par Ja Baithen, Jab Jab Karen Iraade”.
Raj Kapoor, the hero of the movie, who enacts the song on the screen, is only indulging himself in pleasant imagination, fully aware of the impossibility of the event.
While on the subject of perceptions, it is relevant to recall the well-known, but pertinent, old parable that originated in the Indian subcontinent, of the six blind men and an elephant, each man wanting to know what an elephant looks like. One touches the trunk and think it is a tree branch, the other feels the leg and curl it a pillar, the third one touching the tail says it is like a rope while the one who feels here think it is a hand fan, the man feeling the task, think it is a solid pipe and, finally the one who feels Billy says the elephant is like a wall. And a man with normal sight, watching them all, tells them that they were all right, and that the reason why everyone had a different perception was because each of them touched a different part of the elephant.
The story provides a realistic insights into the phenomenon of the relative opaqueness, or the inexpressible nature, of truth. Subjective experiences can be true, but are inherently limited, by the failure of accounting for other truths which are equally valid about the same experience. Truth, in other words, is relative to one’s own perspective and one should always respect the opinions of others.
Following World War-II, a general and his lieutenant boarded a British train. They sat across from an attractive young lady and her grandmother. As the train departed, it entered a long tunnel. Total darkness encompassed the train for approximately thirty seconds. In the darkness of those moments, the passengers heard two things - a kiss and a slap. Everyone on board had his or her own outlook of what happened. For example...
The young lady assumed to herself, “While I’m flattered that the handsome lieutenant kissed me, I’m embarrassed that my grandmother slapped him.”
The grandmother supposed, “I am disappointed with the lieutenant, but I’m proud that my granddaughter had the courage to hit him.”
The general thought, “What in the world . . . why did my lieutenant kiss that civilian young lady and why did she slap me by mistake?”
The lieutenant was the only person on that train who really knew what happened. In that brief period of total darkness, he had the opportunity to kiss an attractive young lady, as well as slap a the general.
(The writer was formerly Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh)