The ever complex Rubik's cube of life?

Recently, I caught an obituary announcement on social media. An old working senior had passed on. Even though my interaction with that person was short, it left an unpleasant aftertaste. From his demeanour, I learnt how not to disrespect my subordinates. This person was so vile in his comments during high-level meetings that my boss would ask me or one of my colleagues to accompany him for moral support. His scoldings were so personal that they bordered on testing my department's competence and even intelligence.

Everyone let out an air of relief when he was transferred for a promotion. Why a person of such arrogance should be rewarded was the million-dollar question. But then, we were glad that our problem was somebody else's. That was the last I heard of him until the fateful announcement.

There it was, the photograph of him with a toothful smile on his face, innocence oozing down his face, and religious symbols below it. It was his obituary announcement. Under that, a long list of his friends and relatives left touching comments. The impression that I got was that he must have left such an indelible mark in their lives. Then there were comments about how good a father, an uncle and a resource person he had been.

We tend to forget that doctors, engineers, shopkeepers, labourers, and security guards are not defined by the uniform or outfit they don. Outside their regular working hours, they are expected to assume other roles—a parent, a comedian, a musician, or a marathon runner. They may suck at their daytime job, but that does not render them beyond reprieve. There is an alternate universe for them.

That incident reminded me of the life and times of Babur, the brutal founder of the Mughal dynasty. A great conqueror he was, he never liked India. He thought that Indians were uncultured and their land was unimpressive compared to Afghanistan. He wanted their wealth, though.

In 1530, his Humayun fell hopelessly sick. The royal physicians gave up. Babur summoned the Sufi priests. They suggested that Babur should sacrifice something very dear to him. Somebody suggested that the Kohinoor (or some other precious stones, unclear) be given away. The trouble is the diamond belonged to Humayun, not Babur. So it was not his to give away. Instead, Babur circumambulated Humayun's bed three times, recited a prayer to Allah to take his life in exchange for his son's, cried out and fell sick to die three months later.*

There are these multifaceted views of an individual. What we see are representations of part of the picture.

*https://www.srichinmoylibrary.com/me-8

Sri Chinmoy, The Moghul Emperors, Agni Press, 2001

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Be a man!

Kiss of the Spider Women (1985)

Director: Héctor Babenco

Against the backdrop of a despotic Latin American regime and people's uprising, this story looks not at the cruelty of man against a fellow man but at the question of what makes a man a man. 

Two men of opposing characters are confined in the same cell. The characters reflect what society defines men then and now, biologically or psychologically, or in modern terms, assumed gender! Is a man judged by his character or words based on a handshake? 

 

Valentin is the epitome of machoism as defined by society. He is a tanned, hirsute, testosterone-driven hot-blooded member of the revolutionary resistance who is caught for subversive activities against the military dictatorship. The authorities are trying very hard to infiltrate his movement but in vain. 

His cellmate is Luis Molina, an effeminate man, an unabashed homosexual, and a window dresser, who was arrested for corrupting an underage youth. 

In the beginning, Valentin cannot stand the sight of Luis being pushed over, not being assertive, having no self-respect as a man and being quite apathetic about politics. He thinks Luis is a hopeless romantic living in a make-believe world of celluloid characters, as they frequently converse about movies he has watched. 

Meanwhile, Valentin is slowly being poisoned by the authorities to help Lios build a bond and retrieve valuable information about Valentin's underground movement. And Luis has cut a deal with the jailers for freedom in exchange for information about Valentin's movement's next action plan. 

As the story progresses, both men slowly understand each other's situation. Being a man is not all about being macho but is a composite of many things. One must be man enough to do what is right, stand up for his beliefs, and fight against atrocities. Being a man is about something other than being gung ho with action-packed manoeuvres; he can also do it on the sly without much fanfare.

P.S. "Kiss of the Spider Woman" has nothing to do with the Spider-Man franchise. It is not only about the changing nature of the relationship between two very different, totally opposite men in every way who have been locked together in the same cell. Day-to-day experiences open their perspective of the other and develop a common bond.

P.S.S. Thanks to @Tutu Dutta for the introduction to this movie.

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Anarchy or Evolution?

That is what the world has come to. There is sadly no 'one-answer-fit-all' response. The people who argue against the grain are smart people with intelligence quotients higher than the general public. 

Everyone is concerned only of his own self. There is an inner desire to live life to the fullest; enough of living under the pretence that something sacrosanct needed to be protected. If all this while they had cowed to societal pressures and suppressed their inner needs, it was the time that they let their hair down. They do as they please.

Over generations, through trials and error, regulations have been put in the system. Each sex had their gender roles. Each gender had their duties and expectations. It was not a perfect arrangement, but there was a semblance of order. The general public accepted it as necessary to continue our existence. 

Nothing does not offend anyone any more. This signage in 

an Italian B and B with an 'alien' in a coquettish pose is not 

acceptable by the LGBT Rights Association there.

Now, a section of the population has started questioning the status quo. These people do not want to be confined in boxes assigned to them. They find it difficult to tick their nature (or is Man's) assigned social expectations. They do not feel comfortable using gender allocated toilet facilities. Through no fault of theirs, they appear trapped in the wrong body, and they want out. They want to fight back. There is no more two sexes. There is a third, fourth, fifth and maybe more.

It seems that there is no necessity to fill up the gender box anymore. The blurring of capability and roles of the sexes are more blurred than ever. Their voices are growing stronger by the day. Their contributions to society cannot be denied. They do not cause the wrath of the Almighty. They are here to stay whether we like it or not. If this would lead to anarchy as the traditionalists predict, it is up to us as thinking humans to accept this change, utilise it to our own benefit and help to steer civilisation towards a future that includes the people who are different and do not confirm. Our journey from the caves to the skyscrapers is rife with outliers who merely refuse to conform to the societal norm.

The first fearless caveman who dared to sit on the tree trunk floating by the river managed to reach on the other side to open the door of opportunities.

https://asok22.wixsite.com/real-lesson 

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