ASHES

So another bomb went off. A thirteen year old died. I played a game of cricket and spent three grand on dinner with friends. Nothing really changed, did it? Apart from some anxious moments for my family, because I didn’t pick up the phone as I was playing. I, huh, I didn’t even bother to call my family, afterall only 3 had died, and there was only one blast. I am becoming shameless, and so are you.

I do not understand much of biology. Not chemical engineering either, but thats not important to the following point. When we get fever, our body shivers. Its the immunity function of our body to remind us that we need to be warmer, our body temperature needs to be elevated so as to kill the germ. The germ is unable to survive at higher temperatures. We spend one night inside the rajai/blanket and wake up the next morning all sweaty and feeling better. But sometimes there is malaria or dengue or any other serious effect. Our body temperature goes above 102, 103 maybe. Our body still shivers but the temperature is too high for other body parts to function. Now we have to put ‘geeli paatiyan’ on the forehead to reduce the temperature. Along with that some other medication is required to debug the virus, and aggressive techniques such as increasing temperature may not work for our own good.

Combat is perhaps not the right way to deal with terrorism, which is to say that terrorism has risen to that stature and not to undermine its effect. If we consider ourselves as a country, then of course we can take any approach. We are country of 1.2 billion approx. and few people dying here and there will make no effect to our ‘integrity’ and we will still lead our lives in a similar fashion. In fact the blasts might just positively impact the population, as people will stay at home more and produce more babies. But even individuals have some worth. We can’t live in the fear of becoming a part of blast, a part of a news bulletin. Lot of people have already become that.

But on the other hand, it is hard to believe that all terrorist groups around the world are barbaric tribes. I don’t know the definitions of any of them, but I suppose some of them could be rightful in the sense we define it. Some of them maybe asking for things they deserve or are worthy of. The entire idea of terrorism is, I believe, built upon the old saying of – ‘hum bhi khelenge nahi to khel bigadenge’. These people are looking to get something they want, which some others have gotten easily. Perhaps they feel that terror is their easier alibi for achieving that something. Right or wrong, ethical or non-ethical, I don’t know. After all I am one man and can see only in one direction at a time.

Although I don’t consider Mahatma Gandhi a god, but I think he has done respectable service to the nation and one of his comments that I concur is about terror. Gandhiji said he who terrorises is actually afraid of himself. Its quite true, if not obvious, and that’s why I feel combating terrorists is just our way of showing that we are afraid now. And that perhaps there is no difference between me and a terrorist. Its just that today, there are more of my kind. Who knows what will happen tomorrow.

A person I met in college, whom I despise to my very breath, more than probably anyone else, once gave me an interesting theory. Of course we were all IITians, alias geeks, so our fundas also revolved around physics. He said to me that entropy (randomness) is always increasing. dS > 0 for all t > 0. Which means that with every passing second, the world, the universe and what ever you want to call it, is becoming more weird, unorganized and disordered. Therefore, negative vibes such as crime, corruption, pollution and the likes will always keep increasing. Till the time that this system comes to an end. There is no stopping it. Me being a straight jacket, optimistic 20 year-old at that time, responded to his remark saying that even if that be true, let us not help that cause by giving in to this belief. We still need to fight against it. Yes entropy will increase, but by how much it will increase is in our control. We can make it negligible. Perhaps one day we can do one better.

But today its falling apart. Physics can make emotions look so meaningless, but we are unable to separate ourselves from these. And the fear lingers on. Agla Indian idol kaun? I think the end is near.

aaj bhi hain pakde ye ummeed ki dori, don’t lose hope is the moral of the story. Jisne sekha inse life me kabhi bhi na jhukna, hot seat pe milega bhaiyya….

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