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Which way shall you see

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“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” Marcus Aurelius was a king guided by the virtue of philosophy, marking him as the wisest king of Rome. A believer of Stoicism, Marcus believed in refining oneself through a course of action in one’s journey before reaching the end goal. This similar study shall serve as the sun to our essay’s solar system. In this essay we shall discuss the meaning of life, not as a goal, but as a journey — what it teaches, how it affects us, what is made of an individual out of it, and where comes the end point. When one views life as a collection of events, it is because they attempt to live in life through them, not for a specific end and this may take them to an uncertain place, but that marks the beauty of living life as a journey, because it sows seeds of experience in an individual — how one shall behave in certain situations, what are the facts to be considered, and other related qualities that arise in a...
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Way to Life

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“The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing.” Socrates was a wise, virtuous intellect of Athens, Greece, mostly conducting his teachings through dialogue and charging absolutely nothing. He roamed the streets in fifth century, distributing knowledge like flowers, showering his thoughts of simplicity, fragmented by the attar of eternal effect. Simplicity is virtue. It’s a way of life, essence of thoughts. It’s a lens to view the world, the same lens through which one shall view themselves in mirror every dawn. In today’s essay, we shall explore the theme of simplicity, what difference it makes, and what lay before and beyond simplicity. At the very end, we shall know the evolution of simplicity, where it has made us stood. Truly sophisticated legends are always the simple ones, whether in lifestyle or behaviour. What one wears and how they dress up won’t make them stand out in a crowd, but how they carry themselves definitely will. For instance, let’s take an example of...
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United We Stand, Divided We Fall

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“Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” is a profound Sanskrit phrase from ancient Indian philosophy that translates into “the world is one family.” The phrase comes from Mahisha, Chapter 6, Verse 72. It signifies the unity of the world by picturing it as a family — a family that works in regard for the welfare of all. This unity in itself brings peace and prosperity to the world. But there have been times where this unity is violated, and the world has seen the destruction of humanity and exploitation of its vulnerabilities. Today in this essay we shall analyse the unity of the world and how it teaches nations across to work together and learn to have a holistic vision, and on the other hand, we shall scrutinise the scene of the globe when the unity is violated — when the world altogether stops working — and what are the conditions one comes across during those times. A critical evaluation of the world’s working mechanism will drive us to a present-day conclusion and will help in...
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First Think then Pursue

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The Bard of Bengal was deeply patriotic, rooted in humanity and moral responsibility—not in aggressive nationalism or blind loyalty to the state. History has suggested that Tagore was critical of aggressive nationalism, as it led to xenophobia. Tagore religiously believed that India’s true potential lies in diversity, and that fierce nationalism may become hostile towards welcoming incoming cultures, threatening the unified diversity of the nation. He fearlessly let his thoughts flow, entertaining their persuasion and consequences—generating the phenomena that truly depict that certain rare thoughts can be and should be entertained before being accepted. So today, in this essay, we shall think critically about the birth of a thought, its mandatory analysis, method of persuasion, and the outcomes that one desires from it. To be able to think is the mother of the process. Rejecting mass opinion and then coming towards a fairly developed conclusion is the first target to be achiev...
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Art and Technology

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The dream of flight has been in vogue since ancient times. Humans have always been engaged in imagination and illusions about being able to fly like birds. The genius of the 1400s, Leonardo da Vinci, through his artistic abilities, designed flying machines on paper, but none of them ever came into practical existence. Later, the father of aviation, George Cayley of England in the 1800s, introduced the distinguished concepts of lift, thrust, and drag, along with testing gliders. Otto Lilienthal flew a glider successfully, which further inspired the Wright brothers to make their first flight in 1903, which lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet. The paper-art dream of Leonardo was finally in the sky — the very sky he must have once looked at with hope. This whole journey of partial success accompanied by failure gives us a clear picture of how soaring it is for human imagination to come into existence through technology, where art too finds a similar place. Both art and technolog...
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We see things as we are

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The great Mauryan emperor Ashoka started his journey of a monarch as a ruthless emperor. He was merciless and saw war as the ultimate religion of a great king, until the war of Kalinga took place — the one that changed the course of his life and transformed him into “Devanampiya Piyadassi Ashoka” — beloved of the gods, who looks with kindness. Ashoka chose non-violence as the path of life; he chose the path of Buddhism after being dazzled by the war of Kalinga. All this happened due to the very natural human phenomenon which can be termed as “a shift in perspective.” The great emperor Ashoka serves as a testimony for our essay: “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.” In simple words, it’s all about perspectives and indeed, it always has been and will always be about perspectives — how one sees or observes things, the outcomes received, and how each person has a different view than the other. In this essay, we shall explore the art of having different approaches a...
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Heraclitus's Flux

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The mystical beauty of Alaska lured Chris McCandless. To him, it was divine, and being a part of that divinity was the ultimate goal. The moment he got the chance to be there, he knew it was his calling. He never wanted to conquer the wild; he just wanted to feel the beauty of that place. Living with nature, exploring, feeding, feeling the true colors of life was what made him the most joyful during those moments. He felt alive, and it was his metaxu. His understanding of the intensity of that very moment made him closer not only to nature but to himself. “You cannot step in the same river twice,” is a phrase attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus and his philosophy about constant flux. The central idea of the phrase depicts the harsh reality of a time-bound universe where everything is impermanent. The choices we make, the paths we follow, will be the only testimony of the life one lives. The lines above about Chris McCandless mark the beginning of our essay, whi...
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