Non-Contradiction

"Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You will find that one of them is wrong."

- Ayn Rand

Instead of arguing about the veracity of this quote, I will quote Avicenna (Ibn Sina) from here.

"Anyone who denies the law of non-contradiction should be beaten and burned until he admits that to be beaten is not the same as not to be beaten, and to be burned is not the same as not to be burned."
You might not believe in non-contradiction and hence we might have contradictory beliefs. But that's alright, because we do not share the same premise. In a discussion or debate, it is necessary to have such contradictory beliefs, to make it interesting. Though, more often than not, such contradictions lead to altercations (even wars!).

What if one person has contradictory beliefs? Is it but not a recipe for disaster? If you believe in non-violence and at the same time are not fine with being a push-over, should you doubt why happiness is elusive?

Existence Vs Consciousness

[Stage Set: The backdrop is pitch black. A mahogany table and chair is placed at the center of the stage. A glass full of some clear looking liquid is placed on the table.]

[Existence enters from the left, drifting into view, walking with no apparent purpose. It sits on the chair and takes a few sips from the clear looking liquid. In jumps Consciousness, looking quite wispy, from the right, conjuring multi-coloured firecrackers all around it, indicating its happiness over some kind of unfathomable victory over Existence.]

Existence: What's with the smirk?

Consciousness: I won! I was here first!

Existence: (amused) Huh? And who has been drinking this "clear looking liquid" then?

Consciousness: (closes its eyes trying to concentrate very hard) Poof!

Existence: (even more amused) I don't see where this is going.

Consciousness: (opens its eyes and is disappointed to see the glass and "clear looking liquid" still in front of it) Meh! Explain this! You couldn't have been first unless I was there to see that you came first. So I came first!

Existence: That is not even logical! Do you mean to say that I am here only because you can see me? Coz that is just stupidity!

Consciousness: Well...but is that not kind of true! I mean, without me, who would ever know that you are here?

Existence: Okay, smart lass! If I wasn't here and so wasn't this table, glass and chair, who would you see and know then?

Consciousness: Ha! Gotcha! I would still be able to see and know my "images"!

Existence: Wow! You really are a self obsessed freak! I'm outta here!

[Existence exits.]

Consciousness: Hey! Don't go...I'll....(Consciousness unwillingly disappears into the "black"drop.)

[Curtain falls.]

THE END

The Secret of Silence

I think it is fair to assume that all of us have used silence, either as a means to an end or as the end itself. At a funeral (respecting the departed), in our moments of solitude (to relax), while sitting on the beach with your loved one (to convey everything that you feel, when you don't have the right words); to convey anger by not speaking to someone; the all-powerful awkward silence; I hope you get the drift! A selection of quotes further exemplifies the profound nature of silence. It is intuitive that sound can have a variety of uses, but how can the absence of sound be so profound? How can something which is nothing be interpreted in so many ways?

At first glance, it seems that the situation determines the interpretation of silence. But there remains the question of misinterpreted silence. Remember when, to not put fuel into the fire, you remained silent during a fight, and it was mistaken as cowardice! Well, the point I am trying to make is that "silence", in reality is our thought process, evoked by the situation. And that gives the silence its quality of being angry, awkward, respectful and so on. So, what silence gives us, is that glimpse inside us, into our own mind! No wonder that we need silence when we introspect.
Remember the lines from William Wordsworth's "Daffodils",

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude

What is this bliss of solitude that he speaks of? Is it not what we call relaxation or being one with yourself or the sound of silence (:P) or Inner Peace? Can you see that the path to Inner Peace is via silence? Not the usual notion of silence though! Have you felt the noise of the thoughts in your brain, when there is no external sound? Is it not "real" noise? The commotion you see when you try to introspect? What if that could go away and leave behind complete silence? That, my friend, is Inner Peace.

That is precisely what meditation is all about! To learn to observe and silence one's thoughts and experience bliss. Try it! Find peace!

Abstraction is beautiful

If you touch a red kettle on the stove today and get burnt, you will be wary touching anything on the stove tomorrow. Have you ever wondered how interesting this is? Have you understood how beautiful this is? You might think that I am insane (seriously...who obsesses about a red kettle?). But what I am trying to stress on, is not the kettle, but the process of learning, deciding which concept to remember. Remembering this experience completely is very complicated (in terms of information - the colour of the kettle, the position of the kettle on the stove, the angle of the kettle with respect to the stove and - I think you get the point! :P) . We could have chosen to remembered not to touch a red kettle on the stove, or not to touch a kettle, but what we remember is to be cautious when touching something on the stove. We removed all the information that seemed unnecessary and remebered only what was left. The core left behind after removing all the unnecessary frills is the abstraction. And to choose the best abstraction to remember is just art (what we call intelligence today!). Can you see it?

If you are still not convinced of abstraction being beautiful, let me link it to something which you might find beautiful - the concept of the Ultimate Truth. The abstraction that you remembered (to be wary of anything on the stove), applies to numerous situations. So, from just one experience, an abstraction allowed us to learn about more than one situation. Imagine a list of all the possible situations in anyone's life (OK! If you can imagine that, what are you doing reading this? Go save the world or something!). In the first level of abstraction, there will be fewer elements than is this list and the second level will have an even smaller number (computer science geeks are requested to not curse me for describing a tree!). So what would you have at the maximum level of abstraction? Just a single element! A single element which is the condensed form of all possible situations! The Ultimate Truth! Behold the power of abstraction.

In conclusion, reading this is just another experience, from which you should forget my side comments and remember the abstraction, abstraction.