17 August 2009

The French philosopher Baruch Spinoza said “If you throw a stone into the air and if the stone has consciousness it will think it’s flying as per its own wish”.

It’s incredible how many of us are so programmed to feel an emotion so strongly even without ever understanding the fundamental basics of why we feel that emotion. The first time I took notice of this is when me and a friend of mine went to watch a film and in the newsreel which came before the film started, as was the practice during those days, a shot of Subash Chandra Bose came. My friend immediately got up and clapped loudly and whistled. He told me that his hair rises when he sees Subash Chandra Bose. I asked him what he knew about Subash Chandra Bose and he said he is a freedom fighter who in opposition to Gandhi, believed in violent action. I asked him what fights did actually Mr.Bose fight? He didn’t know. Then I asked him what he thought of Hitler? To which he said Hitler is a bastard. Then I asked if it would surprise him to know that Mr.Bose was trying to become an ally of Hitler as the British who were ruling us at that time were an enemy of Hitler. He was thoroughly confused and I was sure that the next time he sees Mr.Bose his hair will not rise as much.

Here the point is not about what Mr.Bose’s contribution was which I myself am ignorant of but it’s about how my friend could be programmed to feel that emotion so strongly without him knowing an iota about Mr.Bose and worse he didn’t even bother about knowing.

Now that I put a doubt in his mind, instead of trying to understand what exactly his idol Mr.Bose is about, he just started following me in whatever I say and just wanted to be programmed by me, meaning listening to and believing in whatever I say thereby making me his idol… Thanks.

On another occasion I was speaking to a guy who is so compassionate about every living being. He could not stop talking about kindness towards animals. I asked him what if he was given an offer, that if he kills a dog he will be given a lakh of rupees. He said “No way”. I said what if it is 10 lakhs. He said “No”. Then I asked him if he would be willing to kill a guy who is willing to kill the dog for a lakh of rupees. After some hesitation he said “No, because the man is a living being too”. I asked him if he meant he just loves them for having life and it does not matter what they are doing with their life. He said yes. In other words does he love both Gandhi and Hitler equally to which he got confused and I said that in case he will not kill the man in spite of him doing what he is doing then does it mean that he has no disparity between living beings irrespective of the actions of what he or she or it is doing in life and if that is not the case then he should naturally choose to kill the man who is killing the dog, because the dog is innocent and the man is the killer.

Grudgingly after some thought he said yes he will kill the man. Then I asked him what if the man who is killing the dog for that 1 lakh actually needs the money for the treatment of his dying child. Then would he kill the child to save the dog or let the dog be killed to save the child or will he kill the man and let the child die, and if he will opt to let the man kill the dog to save the child, then how is it justified for him to claim that he has the same compassion for all living beings? And what if he has prior knowledge somehow that the child would grow up to be a really bad guy and the dog would be very good and faithful. Then how does he make the choice?

As my questioning was going on and on and on his anger kept growing and growing and at one time I felt he will leave the child, the man and the dog and kill me instead. So I abandoned my de-programming project and left him in haste.

The reason he and lots of others would not see logic and understand an analysis is that if they really got the point of what I am saying it will almost erase their identity and whatever they have built up till then in their lives and they would be left with a vacant mind which they cannot afford. So they start defending their beliefs violently shutting off all sanity and that’s how radicals are born.

In another instance to a guy who was claiming to be very patriotic and who hates Pakistan and who keeps saying that he is ready to die for the country, I asked him what if a very reliable survey gives findings that all Pakistani’s are very nice guys and all Indian’s are very selfish bastards, what would he do then? I asked him, “When you say you love India what do you love exactly? If it’s the people you love, can you tell me the names of just 50 people in this country who you love so very much and for whom you are ready to die for? Or is it that you love the dirty roads or the corrupt system which you keep bitching about all the time? If you do not want to die for any one single man in particular or any one singe element in India, do you even begin to understand consciously what you mean when you say you will die for India? And if in a war, if India takes over Pakistan and joins it in India will you then love Pakistan too? In actuality how many Pakistani’s do you know to hate them?” By the end of this barrage of questions he took a long long pause and asked me hesitantly if I didn’t love India. I gave up.

I believe that we all are constantly programmed to feel a certain emotion, feel righteous, feel guilty, feel committed, feel grateful etc for a certain intended social and religious objective. We don’t even question the intention of the objective and blindly respond to it and due to that constantly get victimized by the negative effects of that programming. But I believe that if we question and re-question the feelings that are generated in us we can still follow the set rules of society but without getting f**ked in the head.

Anyway the point I am trying to make is that it’s better to f**k up knowingly than getting f**ked up unknowingly.

Other articles by Ram Gopal Varma:
My reaction to reactions (16 Aug 2009)
My reaction to reactions (12 Aug 2009)
The real HoRROR (about Agyaat reviewers)
Lock-up lessons
My reaction to reactions
The Psychological aspect of BGM

Note: Thanks to Ram Gopal Varma for giving us special permission to republish his blogs in idlebrain.com (visit rgvzoomin.com to visit Ram Gopal Varma's blog)