To be Or Not To Be

 To Be, Or Not To Be, That Is The Question:

"Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles

And by opposing end them. To die—to sleep,

No more; and by a sleep to say we end

The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks

That flesh is heir to: 'tis a consummation

Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;

To sleep, perchance to dream—ay, there's the rub:

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause—there's the respect

That makes calamity of so long life.

For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,

Th'oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,

The pangs of dispriz'd love, the law's delay,

The insolence of office, and the spurns

That patient merit of th'unworthy takes,

When he himself might his quietus make

With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscovere'd country, from whose bourn

No traveller returns, puzzles the will,

And makes us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,

And thus the native hue of resolution

Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,

And enterprises of great pitch and moment

With this regard their currents turn awry

And lose the name of action."

Shakespeare from Hamlet by Hamlet

Reading the soliloquy from the tormented soul of Hamlet, the struggle seem so surreal that no one can escape from that dilemma at some point in their life. He is reflecting on his own life representing humanity as a whole, as to the purpose of life. Hamlet is questioning the value of life and asking himself whether it's worthwhile to live. He is extremely depressed at this point and fed up with everything in the world around him, and he is contemplating putting and end to himself. Ironically this lament by Hamlet appears to have been written so aptly, none other than to reflect the anguish faced by millions of people around the world owing to the Covid19 pandemic. Beyond the death due to the virus many more are succumbing to the consequence of the sudden economic depression owing to the pandemic. 

But today I read a self - written obituary by an individual who appears to have lived a full life despite the adversaries thrown at him in his 72 year journey. Below is his obituary that was published in his face book account upon his death.

"I regret to inform you that my vintage vehicle that was being restored, in spite of the best mechanics in India with mastery over their craft, modern tools and expertise at their command, did all they could to revive it, but unfortunately did not succeed. 

The engine gasket blew, the engine housing cracked, the pistons seized, and the old jalopy is now ready to be scrapped. 

Luckily a few parts that have survived destruction will be donated to other similar vintage vehicle owners who can put them to good use in their own machine. 

Must say that for the most inhospitable terrains around the world that I drove it for 72 years, guzzling 'fuel' of all sorts, adding additives that defy description and logic, surviving desert temperature highs, to colds that can freeze the balls of a brass monkey, it has served truly well. 

It surely will be remembered. 

Thank you

 (An official announcement about the scrapping of the vintage machine will be released in the press soon.),"

A Self written Obituary by the late Ejji K Umamahesh

who passed away recently.

17.10.1948 - 16.10.2020

This gentleman's take on life and himself is so refreshing and motivational that I felt re-invigorated and blessed to be alive. Not many have been gifted to write their own obituary, but his reflection on himself using an automobile as a metaphor was simply brilliant. 

One question I often ask my students is, do you see the mirror everyday? The most common answer I get is, yes of course sir. The next question is, what do you see? And the most common answer is, ME. The third question I ask is, do you like what you see? And this time I normally don't get a straight answer. Upon probing most of them would start talking about their physical appearance on the mirror. But when I press on further to ask, how much do they know the person that they see in the mirror, there is always an absolute silence.

The problem is most of us are so caught up with our mundane daily routine, including lazying around that we fail to look at ourselves for our sake. It's not about what we have,  it's about what we can do. If we realise that, life gets a little simpler. Unfortunately the obsession is towards pursuing what we don't have, to acquire that 'one' we do not possess. If only people start living by pusuing what they can do, definitely life would become meaningful not only for themselves but also for other people and the ecosystem they live in.

Life needs to be meaningful rather than being purposeful. Purposeful pursuit tends to be driven by external motivation, whereas meaningful pursuits are innner driven. Which in itself is a journey of self discovery.

Hamlet was 30, and Shakespeare was 35 when he wrote Hamlet, perhaps Shakespeare was fighting his own demons at that stage in life, and Hamlet was his outlet to vent out his torment Nobody really knows what happened to Shakespeare during the 7 lost years during his early adulthood. Theatre perhaps gave him an opportunity to discover himself. His death at the age of 52, was not so tragic, as it was recorded that he contracted fever after a day of drinking and merry making with his fellow poet buddies Michael Drayton and Benjamin Johnson. Strangely, it was recorded that Shakespeare died exactly one month after he wrote his will. 

So by reading the late Umamahesh's obituary I see a sense of liberation that he has achieved, detachment, non judgemental, forgiving and and most importantly having a great sense of humuor. Ability to laugh at oneself is the greatest virtue towards humility, and that rids one from the entrapment of ego, which is the evil that brings man down. 

Perhaps Shakespeare at his later stage in his life, saw that and switched from tragedy to tragicomedy......just a thought.

Regardless the pragmatism in Shakespeare is best described by his famous work, "Alls Well, that Ends Well."

Beyond the burden of the pandemic that all of us carry, this will be a good time to reflect the meaningfulness in our lifes. Who matters, what matters, why it matters, when it matters? Maybe it is a kind of cosmic intervention that has given us the time and space to self-reflect, to re-imagine and reconstruct our mortal existence. 

CHEERS MATES

Ravi Varmman

2317

Subang Jaya

10182020