Knowledge without Wisdom!

Capture of Delhi 1858
Wiki Commons

Having an extensive amount of knowledge is not enough. One must assess the information and use it critically. It is like having a lot of money but no brain to manage it. In the end, it would be like the Emperor's new clothes, and everyone else would have a good laugh at the Emperor's expense.

This idea came to me while listening to a podcast about the 1857 Indian Sepoy Mutiny, also known as the Indian Rebellion or, more recently, India's War of Independence. About a hundred years after the Battle of Plassey, which marked the start of British rule in India, Indians were becoming restless. Christianity was increasingly influential in Indian daily life. British commanders included Christian prayer in their morning briefings. There was a sense that the British were actively proselytising Indians.

So, when the rumour spread that the bullets in the new Enfield rifle were greased with pork and beef fat, and required the sepoys to bite open its greased paper cartridges, Indians, both Hindus and Muslims, were provoked. It all began in Meerut when 85 soldiers defied their superiors. They refused to handle the bullets and were imprisoned. The other soldiers freed them, signalling the start of the rebellion.

Like wildfire, hushed, coded messages were sent between towns in the form of capatis (similar to Chinese mooncakes with hidden messages). Peasants rose up to oppose their colonial masters, especially around Lucknow. The natives rebelled against foreigners in Calcutta, Cawnpore, Delhi, and Lucknow. The problem was that they were not united. They fought in isolated pockets, defending regions such as Jhansi, territories, and their religious beliefs. The British were better organised. They used the telegraph to coordinate their troops and strategies. They also had formidable Sikh and Pathan fighters on their side. The Indians, however, had the numbers. An 82-year-old reluctant pacifist and poetic king, Bahadur Shah Zafar (Bahadur Shah II), was installed as their king. A fierce battle followed. The human tragedy was beyond words. It resulted in a stalemate; both armies remained trapped in trenches.

Aryabhatta -Mathematician-Astronomer
Extraordinaire 476-550 CE

India had advanced knowledge in astronomy. They understood that the Earth was spherical and that their heliocentric model existed long before Europeans could even count. However, knowledge that is not applied or understood in context can be cause for disaster. It is similar to a doctor refusing to attend to a patient and delaying essential care because of a lunar event. Indeed, the lunar eclipse would definitely alter his career path. He could be barred from practising, seeing patients, and might face removal from the medical register. Such a situation would be a 'cataclysmic turn of events' for him. Remaining inactive when a disaster is looming is unlikely to lead to a good outcome.

Suddenly, in early September 1858, the Indian soldiers deserted the battlefield. The Hindus, busy with their routines, had not realised that a full lunar eclipse was occurring. They believed such an event held spiritual significance and signified a disastrous turn of events; therefore, it was expected that prayers and rituals would mitigate its effects. The rest is history. The British gained the upper hand and continued their dominance over India for nearly another 100 years.

It is frequently observed that a lunar eclipse also took place at the time of Jesus Christ's crucifixion in 33 CE.

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Bad moon rising?

It was not just another day. It was a day of jubilation, the day Murugan defeated the asura Suryapadman. Coincidentally, it was also the day of the blue moon showed it fiery side after being engulfed by the dragon. When my mother was a little girl, people devoid of scientific knowledge used to tell that it was a transient event when Mother Nature, tired of holding the Earth all these while, decided to switch hands. Now we know it is the lunar eclipse. If the Supreme Mother is indulged in such gravity-defying task, it is inappropriate for mortals in merrymaking activities including eating and enjoying the outdoors.

In those days, and even now, the event is marked inauspicious. These days, in spite of our technological know-how, the society has somehow paradoxically have re-discovered the splendour of the age-old lost wisdom. They have combined it with current knowledge and try to give it a rational explanation to our ancestors' practices. Substantial changes in the electromagnetic charges restrict people to stay indoors.

With that in mind, all activities were kept to a minimum. Dinner was served, and the kitchen was closed before the onset of the eclipse. Everyone was forced to remain indoors, no TV, no loud music; possibility hallmarks of abstinence from merrymaking. While waiting for the time to pass, what do I receive? A phone call from the hospital of an imminent arrival of a baby. Apparently, the stork had been diligent in his duties. Keeping up my dharma, he rushed to the scene. If everything is pre-determined and happens under the watchful eyes of the Almighty, surely He would not be amused if one shirks his duties on the Makers' account.

Despite all the hullaballoo surrounding the turns of events surrounding the child's delivery amongst a specific circle of people, the mother was ignorant of its significance. As far as she can see it is a joyous event. Her nine months' wait is over, and joy spills in abundance in her young family.

For one group of people (Hindus), there had been a lot of debates and arguments about the lunar eclipse. They were arguing on the merits and appropriateness of keeping the temple open at this time as it was also Thaipusam on that day. Self-proclaimed pandits with their half-baked certainly kept life interesting as the suspense built up to the event with their 'discoveries'. For others, it was just another marvel of the world we live in. They just tell themselves that they are happy to be alive. They humble themselves by immersing themselves in the splendour and beauty of Nature. Still some stare in awe at the ability of the human mind to calculate and predict so accurately that such an event will happen and precisely at a specified time. Splendid!