Thursday, February 16, 2006

Bodhi Vaakya...

Bodhi Tree... means 'words of the awakened one'. I think everyone has little glimpes of enlightenement at one point or another. Some may call it the "aha!" or "eureka!" moment. Often I come across little gems of sentences that carry profound wisdom (Buddhist panna, Sanskrit pradnya). I would like to think, the person was having a glimpse of enlightenment while writing them. Here is one...
Great debates often rage about abstract ideas. Secularism, socialism, free markets, casteism — and non-violence, they have all generated much discussion and more than their share of heat. But more and more, I believe that if they are to mean anything, these ideas have to find body. You have to translate them into daily life, show their relevance to ordinary lives. Absent that, the abstractness itself frustrates, and leads to the viciousness that characterises our debates over these issues.
Read the complete story here. I have read some of Dilip's articles in The Hindu and visit his blog once in a while. Somewhere in one of the comments on his blog, I found a link to the article from which this quote is taken.

Sometimes I get immensly frustrated by the intense discussions on millions of issues and 'isms' on zillions of blogs. This quote aptly portrays my sentiment. Totally agree with "...translate them into daily life..." part too.

"You must be the change you wish to see in this world"... Gandhiji.
"Enlightenment is practice... practice is enlightenment"... Buddhist aphorism

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

hi,(not a commenet for this article)

read your response for the "Sri Sri ravia shankar a con man series"

Found sense in your response, just wanted to appreciate it. As its rare to find people who make sense where they are not demanded for.