a mARTIAN dIARY

Recently I was privileged enough to attend a 2 day course on Indian Art History conducted by Benoy K. Behl , the famous art historian. The history of Indian art from the ancient period, including the Indus Valley Civilisation onward spanning the medieval period was very quickly but effectively reviewed in a span of 2 days. Of course 2 days is too short for a subject for which a lifetime is not enough but I enjoyed the exposure to some key concepts that made me feel closer to my India heritage, something that my education in science has left me feeling alien about.

That Mr Behl is a very learned and well respected man is something that came across in first half an hour thorough the insightful incisions he was already making to our fertile minds. It was attended by around 80 inquisitive minds and was held at the Vicarage Lodge at Delhi University North Campus. The skeletal framework of this course was set in around 26 documentaries that were commissioned by Doordarshan pertaining to Indian art history and had come as a weekly program in around 2003 (not sure). More than the actual technical discussion of the painting the focus was expectably on Indian history and some controversies related to it. But refreshingly Mr Behl  was also able to redraw what could have been some of the ethical guidelines of Ancient India from very seemingly innocuous traditions that he observed across paintings. As a student of management and life this is what made by 2 days worthwhile. I will try to list them out there for posterity.

The well known (to others at least) concept of Chitrasutra – a kind of bible for painting –of the Vishudharmottarra Purana tells us about an highly developed and formalized knowledge of art in India and an understanding of painting which is comparable to what was the best in the world at that point of time. His viewpoint that “God” , as a powerful entity outside our being is a concept was given to us by the westerners and that we have always had deities rather than god is a very interesting and to me, a very intuitive concept. So what’s the difference? Deities are more of a representation of a quality within you that want to bring out. Here is where he brings in the folly of our understanding of another word/concept. The word puja according to him is more adoration rather than prayer. And when you do puja, we by adoring a representative personification of a combination of virtue (and vice?), are trying to open our inner treasure chest to release these qualities onto the word though our being. And from this new perspective, if we take a closer look at it a lot of our seemingly inane traditions they suddenly start making sense. For example our oft ridiculed pantheon of 33 crore gods (read deities) seem more purposeful as representative of different sets of virtues and vices.

From a technical viewpoint as he traced the evolution of Indian art from ancient to medieval to modern times we moved from a “infinite softness or tenderness” to “dynamism of intellect” finally to a more “materialistic” view point (attributed to colonial styles) and then back to an evolved state of understanding as revived by the Bengal school under Tagore, Nadlal Bose etc.

Again the ethical undertones that he brought about from different paintings were beautiful and I’ll try to illustrate the same by some examples. His perspective that the eternal dance of Shiva is not complete without his loved one Shivkami standing and looking at him dancing gives us a peek into Indian viewpoint on the sacred bond of love and the gratification of completeness that comes with it. The representation of moods and facial expression to everything in the pictures from men, women, and animals tells us about the oneness of the universe that we Indians believed and believe in. The complete absence of name of kings and others who commissioned the work is indicative of the collective civic sense of belonging that people had. We also traced the evolution of buddisum, jainisum etc though art particularly the idea behind the emergence of the bodhisatva as a simplification of the concepts of buddisum as a means to reach the common man thru the jataka tales etc. The common technical heritage across different religions helped pointed toward a culture of guilds of artists that helped create beautiful art and also codify and improve the various techniques by them through the patronage of general society from the kings to housewives to fishermen.

The interpretation of stupas as a representation of different levels of self realization as clearly evidenced by a stupa in Indonesia (since they were wrongly interpreted as burial stones by the colonial historians) was of particular interest to the management student in me due to its close similarly with Maslow’s triangle. I saw traces of other management concepts underlying a lot of the observations and it possibly merits deeper study at some point. On a side note, our faculty Mala Sinha at FMS, Delhi is one of the foremost researchers in this field of understanding linkages between management concepts and Indian mythology and its different undertones. Having got a starting nudge in the same I am now looking forward to the results of such explorations that I can apply in my managerial career.

As the best takeaway to the whole course, to my often dismay at the thought that unless I understand a lot more about art my experience of it will be unfinished, Mr Behl  had the perfect panacea. His view point that art (Indian art at least) was a means – and this being its intended purpose than anything else – to at least temporally achieve bhramanadandam – the eternal bliss itself – and that does not require technical knowledge. This makes perfect sense to me as art is art for it speaks without you knowing the language and there is something special that art can give you whatever your proficiency levels in the technical details of it are.  To sum it all up, of course too many things were covered for me to list out but the general ethical framework that invisibly was woven into completion by the end of the 12 hours across 2 days left me richer and closer to my Indian heritage and am looking forward to Mr Behl ’s book on the same when it comes out.

Endnote : For people interested in knowing more about Mr Behl’s work, I am, with permission posting some links of articles written by him which traverse the same annals of history

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2008-01/india-ancient-art/interactive-map.html

Article 1:  ”Eternal India”  (General and Indus Valley)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2416/stories/20070824507606600.htm

Article 2:  ”Birth of Classic Form” (Maurya period + Bharhut)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2417/stories/20070907505406400.htm

Article 3:  ”Harmony Set in Stone” (Sanchi)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2418/stories/20070921505506600.htm

Article 4:  “Grandeur in caves” (Early Western Indian Caves)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2419/stories/20071005505506600.htm

Article 5:  “Of divine forms” (Kushana period)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2420/stories/20071019505206400.htm

Article 6:  “Valley of stupas” (Krishna Valley, Andhra Pradesh)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2421/stories/20071102504206400.htm

Article 7:  “Mind over Matter” (Gupta period)
http://www.flonnet.com/fl2422/stories/20071116504306400.htm

Article 8:  “Simply Grand” (Later caves of Western India)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2423/stories/20071207505906600.htm

Article 9:  “Early Perfection” (Chalukya period)

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2424/stories/20071221505406500.htm

Article 10:  “Living rocks” (Mamallapuram)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2425/stories/20080104242506600.htm

Article 11:  ” Royal shrines” (Kanchipuram and Kalugumalai)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2501/stories/20080118504906500.htm

Article 12:  “Miniature cosmos” (Development of the temple and Central India)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2502/stories/20080201505906500.htm

Article 13:  “Soaring spirit” (Ellora)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2503/stories/20080215250306500.htm

Article 14:  “Tradition of grace” (Orissa and Shravanabelagola)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2504/stories/20080229503906500.htm

Article 15:  “Thought and images” (Pala period, Nalanda and Vikramasila)                            

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2505/stories/20080314250506600.htm

Article 16:  “Chola marvels” (Chola temples)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2506/stories/20080328250606500.htm

Article 17:  “Tradition in bronze” (Chola bronzes)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2507/stories/20080411250706800.htm

Article 18:  “Mountain magic” (Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2508/stories/20080425250806300.htm

Article 19:  “Colour of peace” (Ladakh, Kinnaur and Spiti)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2509/stories/20080509250906400.htm

Article 20:  “Beauty of devotion” (Khajuraho)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2510/stories/20080523251006400.htm

Article 21:  “Glorious blend” (Hoysala temples)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2511/stories/20080606251106600.htm

Article 22:  “Tallest of them all” (Sun temple, Konark)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2512/stories/20080620251206600.htm

Article 23:  “Images of change” (Hampi)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2513/stories/20080704251306500.htm

Article 24:  “Sacred spaces” (Later temples of Tamilnadu)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2514/stories/20080718251406500.htm

Article 25: “ Temples of Peace” (Gujarat and Rajasthan Jaina temples)

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2515/stories/20080801251506600.htm

the plastic life

of pleasure and pain
that one can’t feel

of a constant high
weaved with melancholy

of an armour too thick
for the tears of love

they claim as cost
of a Faustian pact

I see no riches
But it does feel
Like something sold

(Written on a movie and a book)

We, by virtue of our strength (and weakness) in numbers , are a country that needs to focus more on queuing theory. The fact that our vast numbers and a matched dearth in capacity to service these numbers, still has not permeated an expected level of obsession with queues is itself a comment on our culture and our concepts of fairness and self respect (or lack thereof).

In paranoidland It may be safe to assume that for us to actually become a super power , which seems to be the obsession and motive behind a lot of radical cries in the media today , we will have to cultivate a better queuing culture. The dichotomy of a guy who will push aside a septuagenarian to get into a running bus but who will without question queue up in front of a liquor shop is something that must be reconciled for any super power ambitions as it is also the social aspect that will make or break countries in this era.  But I digress

But even within this unfair asylum following a dictionary sans the word “queue”  there are areas where the sanity of queues prevail. From the liquor shop that we visited earlier to a school or college where people get queued for anything and everything. The subtle  hint of authority that can reprimand is probably the pill that creates this sanity but never-the-less sanity it is.

But having established the basic need for queue sanity in these places, there is a obvious question of ordinance to decide the order and here is where we find another human folly. A lot of situations present themselves with a natural order of things that we can easily translate to the law to be used for ordering. Let’s call this “natural fairness”. But then there are other areas where nature abandons us  and leaves us on our own. Imagine a roll call for a viva, or anything related to ordering in a class room of students.  Where is the unfairness you ask?

Imagine two scenarios

People are ordered on the basis of their roll number which is decided on the alphabetic ordering of our names

People are randomly ordered by a pure random selection

Which seems more “fair”. The first right? I have seldom seen fist-fights being broken down or many a agitated minds being calmed down when it is told “…the lists shall proceed alphabetically…”. With the A’s most cheerful (or dreadful as is the case) and the Z’s sharing their counterpart’s anti-emotions. The result ? Conditioned fairness.

While alphabetic order seems like a good order to get back order (I always wanted to say that ) , its only as much arbitrary and more unfair than a pure random selection. The letter that one’s name starts with, be it the product of painstaking research of one’s parents thru peer reviewed classical academic treatise like “1000 Hindu names for your baby” or “Names for Games” , or be the product of a eureka moment of the father (even mother) after 3 pints of beer , is still , surprisingly , arbitrary.

And it’s more unfair than pure repeated randomness because the unfairness has be institutionalized. For once the guy/gal is named there are no more random events controlling his fate at least in this respect  (for the vast majority of course, judging by the scant number of name change advt’s in newspapers).  On top of that the poor “Zuhaib” or “Ankur” has been conditioned to believe that this is fair while the “Manoj’s” of the world go around scott-free cushioned on both sides.

So my final world? Make India a superpower. Invest more in queuing theory research

I am a dream. No illusions but for the one of the whole world. No moral lines. No accountability. Nothing no more a lie, for what is a lie in a lie. And the world blurs, for the many faces that I live with, none exist and everything exists at the same time. The bright colours, sky blue, magenta, pitch black they disperse and copulate with each other creating an existence of one that is not singular but plural.

The worries that I have seem so distant like the lingering sadness or fear that stays with you after a dark dream night. One that infuriates you and kills your sanity for it seems to stalk you without you ever finding out and yet you are vaguely aware of a foreign presence. And then there are  ones that I have conjured up in this lie, which seem so near. The guilt of a sin never committed but as real as truth in the lie. The joy of a happiness never bestowed.

And then someone wakes.  And I die.

(Something that I left half finished loong back…finished it and posting at the original date! )

Finally sitting down to write about the Delhi haat experiences! Though I would like people to belive that it’s because I am doing an MBA and have no time, the sad truth is that I have been lazy. In the meantime, I was handling the same stall at American center for 2 days in connection with the monsoon festival too.
There are multiple aspects to the experience that I have had at these stalls. For example there are awareness, thought, marketing, merchandising, NGO operations, retailing, contact development etc aspects and each probably will hold me in good stead if I ever get into a BDM role.I am planning to touch upon most of them and try to do justice.

Awareness
As far as ecological initiatives are concerned there are two awareness related issues. One is in terms of actual awareness that exists and the unclear distinction between “common” wisdom and actual scientific truth. Now the problem is the former is just misleading and the latter too ambiguous. When I say ambiguous, what I mean is that there are lots of facts that can be twisted either way depending on the way you look at it [as is probably the case with anything..ohh! my elusive quest for truth ) . For me to get into a debate about the truthfulness of these would be futile, because I neither have the required expertise nor the time. But there are some facts that are startling for me actually get off my ass and start working. For example, the issue of sea encroachment is not some futuristic story; it is happening currently and has been happening in a tangible manner in the last 20 years. Orissa has lost WHOLE VILLAGES to it. Now the question of the cause being global warming is still debated, but I am convinced that it’s time for us to start working, because even if we take the position that it’s not affecting today, there is enough proof, when viewed from the most cynical viewpoint, to state that it will happen tomorrow. But yes, these interactions with different people has lead me break away from my cocooned mindset of this being a immediate non-issue.

Thought
One of the biggest problems that we as MBA’s studying in India face today is that of similarly in background and thought of our colleagues, Even at FMS (Or more so because its FMS) the diversity, though better than most other top notch b-schools because of our unique test system (50%tile cut-offs in different sections), is deplorable. 80% of my classmates are engineers and in the similar age group. Though this has its advantages, the exposure to new ideas or rather new ways of thinking gets limited. For the new age mantra of divergent thinking, this is one of the biggest hindrances, as once your way of thinking matches with your team-mates, they synergy is trampling constructive thought process and even conflict. In this respect, this stall stint has brought me contact with so many people that I cant even began to comprehend the effect of it all on my thinking. From fanatical environmentalists to NGO founders to Sports reporters to Academicians to NIFT graduates, the level of exposure has been phenomenal. And they way they approach problems is truly something that has started to help refine my own approach. This is probably more in line with the “learning from unusual sources” concept that I was exposed back in MindTree.

Accountability

The biggest turn off for a disciple of the capitalist world in these things is the lack of accountability. Initially it made me crazy to think of the whole lack of accountability and proper checks that any rational and practical (read slightly misanthropic) mind would dictate. But then I never factored in the way some of the people involved think and it’s a bit unrealistically honourable and noble. I am not trying to paint a pretty picture, because it’s obvious to anyone who sees it that there are different drivers for people and 90% of them are probably driven by not very noble (but not dishonourable) factors, but the rest 10% turn the rational model on its head. But there is still a lot of scope for management research to be done. Or if it had been already done , for it to percolate down.

Contact/Opportunity Development
I really didn’t realize how much difference it makes when you put up a stall in a fair (even a permanent one like dilli haat). Having been a placement team member in one of the worst times in terms of placement , the phrase “cold calling” is not something which will create good image/word associations in my mind. [actually now that I think of it feels like fun..but definitely not during that time]…well I digress…the crux is that the amount of contacts and opportunities that you can create in a fair is like a gazillion times more!

I guess I have covered some of the pressing things in my mind. Awesome learning experience that it was, it was also fun interacting with people who are totally different from the kind of people that I have been around for a while now. As far as more volunteer work for the next few months are concerned I will be on a hiatus till placements get over!