The Moors came to prominence in the 8^th century A.D. when they captured and reigned in the Iberian Peninsula, the modern-day Portugal and Spain. They were ousted from their last stronghold in Spain, Granada in 1492, at the outset of the Spanish inquisition. Spain was coming of age in warfare and merchant trade and soon hoisted their national flags on the soil of Nicaragua in Central America. In 1537 they named a city they established on Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America, Granada, in honor of their victory over the Moors at Spain.

The moors had reigned in the Iberian Peninsula for over seven centuries, and with their fall in 1492, a whole way of civilization came to an end. The fall of the much cultured and learned Moors gave way to barbaric and boorish Spaniards who soon began the destruction of humanity with their agenda of proselytizing the world to their Christianity, and rooting the seeds of colonialism via the mercantile trade that they started. With the victory at Granada there began a phantasmagoric sequence of genocide, conversion of Jews and Moors to Christianity, and burning of the books in libraries and temples long preserved by the Moors. The books were a treasure trove of classical studies and much stands lost to the world by their destruction.

The Moors with their Arabic influence were a highly cultured group. Their tastes in books, music, cuisine and art & design still are a source of awe and inspiration. The Arabesque patterns with a flourish of flower and geometrical shapes are much in demand for fashion, filigreed jewelries and home décor. The Moorish architecture at its apogee is still preserved in the cities of Morocco; Marrakech and Casablanca are the extant examples. The exotic style of buildings preserved there at are much in vogue not only for the high flyers of America, styling their villas and furnishing their dinner sets in the Moroccan design, but Hollywood too is enchanted by it and continues to shoot biggies such as Casablanca, Star Wars, and the Prince of Persia at Morocco, all bearing the Moorish stamp.

Even Shakespeare had to acknowledge the prominence of the Moors in the European affairs, and fashioned one of his most famous lead character, Othello after them. Othello of course was a Moor, etching forever in the annals of history and literature the class of people we must never forget and revere with the respect a lead character always deserves, yet, the Moors fell in the same books, face on the ground, forever to be remembered only on the pages of history and role played in theatres, just as Othello is.

Robert Clive and Mir Jafar after the Battle of Plassey, 1757

(above image copyrighted to National Portrait Gallery, London http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw01347/Robert-Clive-and-Mir-Jafar-after-the-Battle-of-Plassey-1757)

As is very well known, the historical account is seldom unbiased and true to the incidences and often full of propaganda to foster a given agenda. While recently going through an account of Robert Clive, the man renowned for establishing British Empire in India almost singlehandedly, the bias inherent in the literature hit me hard to the point of revulsion for any historial account by the non indian about the indian history. No doubt the academicians and writers from the west have have contributed immensely in archiving and cataloguing the Indian struggle for Independence and provided the often necessary third point of view, but i believe the “white man’s burden” hanging around their neck like a dead Albatross, often skews their perspective.

Sample these, some of the accounts ( rather propaganda) found in the children’s books about Robert Clive from Western authors.

On his childhood:

Robert Clive was the eldest of a large English family. He was born in Shropshire in the year 1725. At a very early age he showed that he had a strong will and a fiery passion, “flying out on every trifling occasion.” The story is still told in the neighbourhood of how “Bob Clive,” when quite a little boy, climbed to the top of a lofty steeple, and with what terror people saw him seated on a stone spout near the top. ( doesn’t this make him like some superhero )He was sent from school to school, but made little progress with his learning. Instead, he gained the character of being a very naughty little boy. True, one far-seeing master prophesied that he would yet make “a great figure in the world,” (of course at hindsight such comments can be attributed about any successful person, isn’t it ) but for the most part he was held to be a dunce. Nothing was expected from such a boy, and when he was eighteen his parents sent him off to India, in the service of the East India Company, to “make his fortune or die of a fever.” ( bollywod kinda plot? )

On the siege of Arcot:

Arcot was sixty-five miles away. The fort was known to be garrisoned by 1100 men, but Clive marched bravely forth. During the march a terrific storm arose. The rain swept down in a deluge on the little army, the lightning played around them, the thunder pealed over their heads; but they pushed on through it all, ( kidding me! sure they did march ) undaunted in their desperate undertaking. Tidings of their fearless endurance reached the town before them. A panic seized the native garrison: they abandoned the fort. Not a shot was fired, and Clive with his 500 men entered the city in triumph. ( really, did all the mighty Rajput soldiers with all the hubris about their loyalty and might, so pathetic in their duties, that they gave up the house of their master without a wielding a single sword? )The young boy-captain had already won a deathless renown. ( Reportedly, Clive was aged 25 at the time )

If such an account of the history on one front showcases their kinsfolk in a superhero mode, they undermine at the same time our respect for the indian fighters. Read this.

It was not likely that the spirited little army should be left in undisputed possession of Arcot, and Clive now prepared for an inevitable siege. Soon 10,000 men had swarmed into the place, hemming in the garrison on every side. Days grew to weeks, and the ready resource of Clive alone saved the situation. The handful of men—European and native—caught the spirit of their leader, and each became a hero. History contains no more touching instance of native fidelity than that related of the men who came to Clive, not to complain of their own scanty fare, but to propose “that all the grain should be given to Europeans, who required more nourishment than the natives of Asia. The thin gruel, strained away from the rice, would do for them,” they said. With such as these Clive held the fort for fifty days…

Why this outrage at such pieces of history one might ask. Therein lies the point i would reply. All of us can recount how our history teachers taught us in our childhood the indian way of treating the “atithi-devo bhavah”. That despite all the troubles and pain we underwent, we still respected and helped the white folks. Thats exactly what the Whites wanted us to learn; and trained our teahcers to teach. Be deluded in the opium fumes of your own goodness, and do nothin to fight. And thats exactly why we need to knock on the doors of history, again. and Again. To revise.

‘The Elephant Celebes’ – one of the seminal paintings by the avant-garde artist Max Ernst, is considered to pioneer the Surrealist Movement in the visual arena. Painted in 1921 during the First World War, it captures the essence of Surrealist manifesto. In essence, it wanted to depart from the long established dictum of aesthetics in meaningful beauty, to an anarchist representation of beauty. It attempted to give a flowing medium to the subconscious thoughts, especially dreams, using what is called Automatization. It owed great allegiance to Freud and his Psychoanalytic methods of interpreting dreams. Thus surrealists wanted to evoke the superior underlying current running below the distorted images to make sense, by meticulous juxtaposition. What seems at first totally abstract, after careful deliberation evokes a resembling pattern that soothes the mind.

The Elephant Celebes is at its peak to reveal the influences of various art movements in the genesis of Surrealism. The minimalistic representation using geometric curves and lines – a feature of Cubism – and totally senseless everyday objects – a feature of Dadaism – were beautifully employed to evoke a sense of coherence from anarchy – a feature of Surrealism. The everyday objects, such as a lamp’s shade an incomplete bust of a woman, hose pipes and piggy bank, appear to be placed randomly in a free flowing pattern of Automatization. Yet as Freud himself criticized, “The surrealists attempt to portray things in an abstract manner, resembling the subconscious, yet their ego is evident every time, in trying to give a sense to these abstractions, consciously or subconsciously”.

On elements of composition:

Mostly curved lines have been used, giving an overall dynamic feel. The central space is occupied by some geometrical curves; the bust on the right corner brings to relief, naturalistic ones. This dynamism is nonetheless subdued due to a grayish dull and black color. Some bright colors have been used as well to bring dynamism and transform to the abstraction of the painting. The vertical line on the left breaks symmetry from the central body and brings dynamism. The background of the image seems like a sky, but the painting has no middle ground – similar to such absence in Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. The elements of juxtaposition and shadows create a three dimensional representation, though some of the shadows defy angle relation to other shadows, such as the elephant’s right leg’s shadow compared to the shadows of hose pipe, vertical line at left and left leg of the elephant. The element of completeness has been challenged by placing mutilated body parts here and there, such as the arm and the leg.

Cities!!

The bristling pace of life, the breeze of culture, the exotic smells of cuisine, the montage of haute couture. Ever wondered how they came into existence?

They have been present since time immemorial and will be forevermore. They are coeval with civilizations. Riding on the tide of time they date from the mythical vrindavan and troy, to ancient Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro and Babylon, to historic Alexandria, Persepolis, to modern Paris, Delhi, Tokyo and Nova Scotia. our history is overflowing with the details of cities, and modern city planners are by the minute conceptualizing new ones. Historically cities were ordered by great emperors and kings for a settlement and governing of population, and used to be planned and colossal in size. it could only happen because of the prodigious might of the empires that could provide the intelligence and materials for city building self sufficiently. Even in the modern times great cities have been built only by the efforts of whole nations, such as development of Islamabad in Pakistan, or Nova Scotia in Canada. Presently it has become difficult to develop cities from scratch. Only by land filling or extending the cities into conurbations is it possible to dilate the diagonals of the city boundaries.

the existence of cities from time immemorial if the myths are to be believed or its development over time in the evolutionary course if Darwin’s theory is to be believed, indicate a great need for human bonding. man has intelligence and is a social animal. it not only cares for its present by fulfilling the basic necessities of life like animals do, but goes further in securing its future. it has memories and carries past with it. It secures a safe future for its progenies. Man lives in a community and interacts. it develops culture and ethos unique to the grouping. To cater to the different avocations and desires many vistas are made available. Man is not monotonous, it is not an automaton, it strives for new experiences all the time. for this a great population has to come together, so that at any time the slice of demography project the same ratio of different vocations though individually man continue to dabble different jobs. Meanwhile the culture continued to grow. It took on more refined shades and hues. Theatre, arts, music, literature, dance all developed. Man has inherent liking for these, and cities engender from such needs.

once born, city breathes on its own. It is like a sapling. First it needs tender diligent care in early years but later on when fully grown it nurtures itself and its symbiotic denizens solicitously. However their forms have changed over time. Previously kings and monarchs ordered and ruled cities within the enclosed walls which did not enlarge its boundaries. The cities undoubtedly used to be well planned and managed, examples being the fortified city of Fatehpur, Beijing, or cities of Tibet but the modern unwalled cities grow unrestrainedly and now it has increasingly become difficult to dichotomize the conurbations from megacities and towns from cities. All are coalescing into one. The behemoth cities of New York, Paris and Delhi are points in case. Despite these, cities continue to be the centers of attraction for human population.

Many a countryman has travelled long miles to have a glimpse of the famed cities of yore. Be it the utopian Shangri-la and El Dorado or the existing cities -the Big Apple, the Blue City or the city of fashion Paris, they continue to remain cynosure of human ambitions. Cities continue to remain the political, capital, military, and educational centers. None can deny the clout of Washington or puissance of London; or the swanky millionaires of New York and the military might of Skoda. None can be profane about the sanctity of the educational temples at Boston or Pune and yet all want to be debauched and swathed in the haute couture of Paris. Cities continue to provide us what we dream for.

But we dream not only for material satisfaction but once fulfilled we strive for the higher goals. The goals of virtue, liberty, fraternity, free thoughts. We always strive for the freedom of mind and spirit and once curtailed we fight to wrench it back even from destiny. It is human nature. We have destroyed tyrants, despots and autocrats in the past by the sheer force of human will through revolutions. A revolution is also the child of a city. Though it represents the cross sectional view of the population within and without yet it solely is a gift of the city. Because it is only in a city that a revolution can take place.

Some of you might recall the scientist protagonist Katherine from the thriller “The Lost Symbol” the widely acclaimed but poorly delivered book by the bestselling author Dan Brown of “The Da Vinci Code” fame. She was a scientist extricating the tenets of noetic science so that it can be proved empirically. She proposed a beautiful contention that “our thought has mass”. Then she expatiates that similar to all mass forms though miniscule in nature and weight that has gravitational forces attached, if many people start thinking the same thoughts at a particular time, these kindred thoughts attract each other by way of some gravitational pull, and coalesce to become a large weight. Just like trillions of sand particles of trifling attractive forces combine to form a moon which then has enough tangible forces to attract and sway the waters of the ocean to form tides and cause them to rise and fall, a heavy mass of thought can have perceptible influence on the thoughts of other people nearby. This is in essence what the ancients tried to say through the axiom “Like begets like”. Even Swami Vivekananda exalted the virtues of positive thinking for precisely this phenomenon.

Rationalizing the importance of cities in their radical historical contributions and an active role in shaping the contemporary events with the knowledge of above proposition becomes easy. Cities have always played the role of a leader in engendering revolutions and wrought them to success. Be it the Sicilian Vespers at Sicily, the blacks’ defiance of further discriminations actuated at Oakland, the tea party at Boston, the pulling down of the Iron Curtain in Berlin or the sepoy mutiny and subsequent Indian revolution in a syndicated effort from many Indian cities. All were events in the cities. One may argue that cities are the places where enough population existed in the first place to take part in and bring about a revolution. Villages and small towns do not have even the quorum to spark revolutions. True and agreed. But the more important phenomenon here is that towns and villages lack the critical population to fulminate. Just as nuclear explosion requires a critical mass below which though having the potential to explode the atoms fail to create a chain reaction, the coalescing of thoughts of small population fail to act as detonator. In Hindi we say “akela chana bhaad nahi fod sakta”. The cities provide the Limbo for us to come together and fight the universal rights.

All in all, pages can be filled to rhapsodize and glorify the cities. It is after all the best artifact of human endeavor and paeans in its honor will be like drops in the ocean. May the archangel of cities – Bethanel, continue its watchful gaze…

क्या तुम वापस आओगी?

सपने भी बुने साथ तेरे
पर गाँठ कमज़ोर हो गयी
ताने बाने तो बने है अब भी
मगर रंगों ने धोखा दे दिया

भूचाल ही तो था वो
तुम्हारे वहां से निकलते ही
समेट रहा हूँ मैं अब तक
बिखरे रेतों को
कोशिश ज़ारी है
फिर से घरौंदा बनाने की

पर बिन तेरे
ये घर न जाने कैसा होगा
रोशन तो होगी दीवारें
पर अन्दर अँधेरा सूनापन और
यादों के जाल का बसेरा होगा

कायनात से कुछ और नहीं
बीतें दिनों जैसी
एक बार वैसी ही
एहसास की ख्वाहिश है

हाँ हमारी कड़वाहट तो अब भी है
और शक की दीवार उतनी ही मजबूत
पर तुम्हारी बिल्लियाँ अब भी
आती है, दूध पीने
पीती नहीं, जानती है
तुम्हारी महक

इक दाना भी कम न हुआ
न ही बूंदों ने स्पर्श
ज़िद्‍द है, पूरी होगी
बस तुम्हारे हाथों से

इंतज़ार रहेगा,
नब्जों के धड़कने तलक

“Hello..” a smile follows.

“it is too chilled out here”

“Yeah i agree.”

“well, you are the most beautiful girl, i have ever met”.

blush. “That’s a cliche! try something different”

“well, i am the cutest, smartest, most fun guy you’ll ever meet…”

laughs hysterically..” ha ha ha… this attitude and you think you are fun. blah!”

she lights a smoke. offers “do u want one”

“NO. thanks. but i don’t smoke”

“!!!! c’mon. you are a guy”

“excuse me! do u think all guys smoke”

“Yeah. after all its the most manly thing. “

“so, you are a tomboy after all”

the face reddens. “for girls its elegance. don’t try me, that you don’t like girls smoking.”

“well, it makes good celebrities. just to cringe for. it doesnt make so much an impact in real life”

“so, i do not smoke. that makes me unmanly!!?”

“No!! no no.. its just the usual perception. after all, why dont u. when everybody does”

“so why do you? coz everybody does?”

“i know what you mean. . . but i am not lamb. i dont know why i started. .. now its just part of me”

“never thought to kick it?”

“ha ha.. its hotel california dear!”

“i know”

“is it why, you never picked it up”

“No…No…umm… i dont know. i just never felt trying it out”

“it feels relaxing you know.”

“like Ostrich!”

“you are rude!” “i agree it helps in that too… but its not only that. it gives satisfaction.” “like right now. chilly weather, and a Marlow in your hand”

All the visions of an American city conjured up till date, after watching so many movies, series, and news, were truly represented by the skyscrapers in and around Embaracadero. The spick and span boulevards, public restrooms, and good-looking street vendors and artists…it all amazed and took us off guard of what we could ever dream a city to be. It’s aptly put in a Chinese verse “you learn more by walking a mile, than reading a book a mile long…”

The vision, the outlook, the thinking, everything changes after a new visit. That’s why cultures emphasize so much on travelling and learning new things. Being in India, I could not have ever felt how different parts of world fare for themselves. It’s only by seeing that my mind in some sense truly grasps an understanding of how things truly are. They might not be an expert’s view, but still the confidence of knowing things at the first-rate is amazing.

San Francisco or SF is a big city in terms of area, but not in terms of population. The population is only around a million, much less than any big city of India. Yet the city is so well planned and structured, that it lures you at the first sight to make it your home. The buildings look awesome. It seems as if all the neighboring buildings were built-in consult with each other, and as if the architects were all designing the buildings keeping in mind the structure and look of others around it. The whole lot of them can be beautifully captured in a panoramic view from the opposite bay area, capturing in essence the rise and power of American skyline. The entire beautiful tall slender cohort structures dance in concert dressed in glassy veils amid a sparkling sunshine.

Though SF has a lot more to offer like China Town, Bay Bridge, etc… but we spent our day roaming in gay and jolly atmosphere, in the Fisherman’s Wharf. It’s the most famous tourist spot of the city and attracts a huge crowd. In the words of Oscar Wilde describing the crowd at Wharf “I have never seen so many well-dressed, well-fed, business-like looking Bohemians in all my life” .

People truly enjoy themselves at the most enticing experience they get on offer to the bay visit. Singers were playing jazz on the street and the rappers truly stole the show with their amazing dancing skills.

(click below for a video of the street dance)

Street dance at Fisherman\’s Wharf, San Francisco

The market on the seashore is great, as well as the bargain in the shops. There is a great aquarium showcasing various sea creatures as well. Yet, the most famous of the Wharf were the sea lions, thronging in hundreds of number, to soak in sun on the floating decks made specially for them (they smell horribly bad though).

After all, why hasn’t India been able to produce any beauty queens like Miss Worlds after 2000. i mean within 10 years we were able to produce Miss Universe, Miss  Asia Pacific and a string of Miss Worlds, and yet our beauties have all of a sudden disappeared? The contests are very well-known to be run by the cosmetic industry. And once they wanted to penetrate India’s market when it opened its doors to the foreign companies, they lured Indian consumers towards cosmetics by awarding beauty crowns and installing faith in themselves towards buying their products sub consciously. Note that no developed nation’s girls ever become Miss Worlds. Only the markets the company are about to explore are the winners. The reason for a shower of Oscar is pretty much evident too and exposes their intention.

quoting the above verbatim:

” It’s a warm sunny afternoon. the weather is clear. the zephyr blows coolly over the air. i shall leave today. this soil, my birthplace. i want to explore a new world. a new horizon. i want to see the green light at the end. it’s said i can see it in the pacific. just as the sun takes a dip into the sea of night. The Green Light. that holy grail of god’s beauty.

…

i mounted today on the ship. HMS Beagle. its going west. the zephyr continues to blow.

…

it’s two months since i left. weather is hot. and yet peaceful. the sea is still. as if taking a siesta. it welcomes us all. This is pacific. at the horizon i see an island. serene and beautiful.
it’s close to us now. captain is anchoring the ship. we all step down. the virgin beaches. the soft sands. this place is amazing.

i can locate it now. on my map. i shall call it Galapagos.

….

i have been on this island for months now. seen wonderful animals. of new kinds. of new species altogether. this place is wonderful. never seen such a menagerie. it’s the perfect place to study animals. i have done bit of my own too.

i feel this place is completely secluded. out-of-bounds from other human factors. nothing seems to be disturbed. no human or natural intervention. life has taken its own course here.
things have developed on their own. i have seen many groups of animals. all similar yet distinct. you see one and you feel deja vu. but no. it’s not the same. look closer. it’s as if this one took birth from the last one i remember. as if it has “EVOLVED“.

subtle differences. gross differences. intermediates. yes. you can follow these animals. and feel them metamorphose. one into another. its like the jigsaw puzzle. you fit them all into a sequence. i spotted one here and one there. seen so many of them. and now fit them all into the puzzle.
its clear to me. i can trace them back all to a common ancestor. they all must have come from this one native. logically then, couldn’t we have ALL come from a common ancestor too?

….

its five years since i left home. i miss it. the warmth of the home. the family. i am on my way back. i shall reach there soon.

i have pondered a lot. over what i observed at Galapagos. it is questioning the presence of god. it seems he left it a long time ago. i couldn’t possibly think of how life came there. maybe God did give birth to life there. but what about then? things seem to have been on their own. life has evolved on its own. by hit and trial. it dint know which path to take. it has tried to manifest into all possible forms. yet few seem to have survived. its like, its like each form was competing to another. like a dire need of survival. yes. like as if it is “Survival Of The Fittest“.
which won, lived. proliferated. metamorphosed into a new form. better than before. which lost, perished… “

But after joining IIT my enthusiasm seems to have taken a big dip. Though our central library easily boasts of being the largest technical library in whole of Asia, with 3 lacs and above books in its collection, the problem of laying my hands on a single textbook never seems to fade. what with managing to pass 5 semesters, just reading from my dearest batchmates xeroxed notes  —Let me confess frankly, there have been times when those tiny little scribbles at the bottom of the xeroxed notes have proven to be life saviour in understanding the hyperbole of complex equations and roman names of biological terms. it must have been the good insight of the poor guy who notes and clings to each word spoken out of prof’s pursed lips, to save us all at the end of the day/exam. had he not written those vague ideas and notes on some african tribal people in a course on neurophysiology, we would all have scored half of what we did—  and this all, just because we have usually got no book to read or consult from. Being in the department of biotechnology, surely is a barrier to buy books, as each of them usually costs more than 2000 bucks. however, almost ALL the books are available in ebook format. but cant help it guys, i just cant connect with ebooks. the traditional feel of a book in hand, surely fires up my senses and conscioiusness.

This lack of availability of atleast textbooks is something i believe students from all the colleges face. On a discussion on the same issue, i came to know of a very novel idea, which apparently is widespread in bengal’s state run colleges. you may call it a book bank system, and it was for sometime also implemented in the colleges of south india.

The system is, that at the time of enrollment of a student into a college, a one time fee of Rs. 3000 is deposited, solely for the purpose of providing all the textbooks in the whole course of 8/10 semesters. The huge no. of books purchased won’t create a problem of storage space, as the textbooks can be passed on to each batch of fresh juniors in each department.
The college can contact the publishers to provide the books with downpayment, and subsequent paying of installments with fresh enrollments.

This way each student will have his own copy of textbook, and the chaos of running after notes and standing in queue outside xerox centres will be avoided. in fact with a book always nearby to look upon, more and more students would take more active participation in the course lectures, and can come up with doubts to ask. ( i can already see some murmurs in your mind about this doubt thing but remember, if you do not know the subject, you can not ask doubts )

To have a discussion on the possibilty of such a venture, in our college, i met our assistant librarian. he was quite impressed by the idea, (i do not claim the idea to be my brainchild ), and suggested to implement it first in my hall of residence. But i strongly feel, its quite tough to implement it in our hostel, and feel the feasibility would be much higher if some authorities propose to students to make this move. or In fact, if the student body approaches the authorities with this idea in a united effort, i am sure it will be implemented very soon. what the authorities fear is that students would raise a hullabaloo crying against shilling out some money, and asking library to do this from the library funds. believe me guys, its impossible for them to buy so many books.

everyone, who has given enough time to read this blog, do care to leave any comment or suggestions. i strongly believe this book bank thing should be implemented as soon as possible.

adios and a happy new year.