A-Drop-Full Cup

Who's Going to Read It?

2012-01-31T20:00:00.002Z

An innocent anthropologist reached a small West African town, when he found a notice of a campaign against illiteracy that read:

The illiterate adult, incapable and lacking information, has always constituted an obstacle to the setting of any initiative tending towards the general upliftment of a country.

The anthropologist mused,

"It was not clear how illiterates were supposed to read the placard."

excerpts from The Innocent Anthropologist by Nigel Barley

This Is My Song

2012-01-28T10:39:00.000Z

............

This is my song, Oh God of all the nations,

A song of peace for lands afar and mine.

This is my home, the country where my heart is;

Here are my hopes, my dreams, my sacred shrine.

But other hearts in other lands are beating,

With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine

My country's skies are bluer than the ocean,

and sunlight beams on clover leaf and pine.

But other lands have sunlight too and clover,

and skies are everywhere as blue as mine.

This is my song, oh God of all the nations;

a song of peace for their land and for mine.

Our Precious Yet Fragile Memory

2012-01-25T18:55:00.000Z

I was sitting in a neurology clinic recently when I saw a lady in her late-70s with a chief complain of memory problems. In fact, the complain came from her concerned husband who was also present to meet the consultant neurologist. The patient, a lady with some memory loss was quite unaware of her situation. According to her husband, she also struggled to recognize him at times! She had to be corrected by her husband many times throughout the consultation, only to her embarrassment.

How much do we value our memory? Isn't it the one thing that glues together all our experience into a meaningful narrative, and gives meaning to our private lives?

----

We forget a lot of things all the time - except the savants among us, of course. And yet there are things that get stored in our memory - intentionally or otherwise. Things that we want to remember, especially our achievements, memories of our loved ones, relevant knowledge to pass exams, etc are not the only ones that define our being. In fact, even memories that we try hard to forget like embarrassing moments and hateful things also make us who we are.

So what is it like to lose our memory? To the person who is losing all her memory, it will cause some confusion and distress, quite obviously. "Where am I? Who are you? ...Who am I?"

But there will be even more distress for the carer, and loved ones. On top of the trouble of looking after people with dementia, the fact that someone who once knew you really well could no longer recognize you would make you even more upset.

Without realizing it, the sadness and pity that we feel when we find out that someone we care about is suffering from dementia - or any memory problems - actually comes from of our own insecurity facing the new reality that the other person no longer remembers us. We'd then ask ourselves, "Who else cares about me?"

I Never Meant To

2012-01-21T00:34:00.000Z

Reflecting on Death

2012-01-18T17:25:00.004Z

Death is the only thing that is certain. I've been made even more aware of this fact on my current one-week clinical attachment on palliative care. This is a branch of medicine that specializes in helping people with incurable diseases to deal with their symptoms, especially pain. Palliative care doctors also looks after those who are approaching the terminal stages of their illness.

When should one start reflecting on death - on attending a funeral? with the loss of a loved one? on being diagnosed with cancer?

This ability to anticipate death is what distinguishes humans from other animals. The fear of our mortality is not about being afraid of the afterlife. Rather, it is all about the fear of losing out from this earthly life. So long as we aspire to achieve something in our waking life, we will be afraid to die.

But what about daredevils and stuntmen? I think these are the few who can suppress the fear of death by psychologically trying to minimize the potential that their risky activity might kill them. We must only ask among those that have barely escaped a fatal accident during a dangerous stunt, if the the fear of death was not resuscitated with that experience.

On the other hand, when one exaggerates the potential that certain things like insects or flying on a plane can kill him, then one gets a phobia of those things.

It's all too human to be afraid of death, but I think there's a way to transcend this fear. Our worldly desires must be why we want to live longer - so that we we have more time to achieve them - and they are the cause of our fear of death. If we can constantly be mindful of our fulfilled ambitions - and contemplate on our achievements - desire for greater things can be compensated or better, extinguished.

"The aim of those who practice philosophy in the proper manner is to practice for dying and death"

Socrates

Stupid and Confused

2012-01-15T20:56:00.002Z

Galileo Galilei wrote in his Dialogue (1632):

And when I run over the many and marvelous inventions men have discovered in the arts as in letters, and then reflect upon my own knowledge, I count myself little better than miserable. I am so far from being able to promise myself, not indeed the finding out of anything new, but even the learning of what has already been discovered, that I feel stupid and confused, and am goaded by despair.

If I look at some excellent statue, I say within my heart: "When will you be able to remove the excess from a block of marble and reveal so lovely a figure hidden therein? When will you know how to mix different colors and spread them over a canvas or a wall and represent all visible objects by their means, like a Michelangelo, a Raphael, or a Titian?" Looking at what men have found out about arranging the musical intervals and forming precepts and rules in order to control them for the wonderful delight of the ear, when shall I be able to cease my amazement? What shall I say of so many and such diverse instruments? With what admiration the reading of excellent poets fills anyone who attentively studies the invention and interpretation of concepts: And what shall I say of architecture? What of the art of navigation?

But surpassing all stupendous inventions, what sublimity of mind was his who dreamed of finding means to communicate his deepest thoughts to any other person, though distant by might intervals of place and time! Of talking with those who are in India; of speaking to those who are not yet born and will not be born for a thousand or ten thousand years; and with what facility, by the different arrangements of twenty characters upon a page!

When the Father of Modern Science humbly admitted (indirectly through a character in his book) that he feels "stupid and confused" that he was far from discovering anything new, or, even further from learning all that has already been discovered; I think he was simply admiring the vast sea of Divine wisdom and knowledge.

Far from shying away from the quest to traverse that sea of Divinity, through the realization of his own limitations, Galileo has gained greater insight into the workings of the universe than others who are full of vanity.

Museums and Horded Items

2012-01-14T21:44:00.002Z

I just got back from visiting the Science Museum at South Kensington. There are quite a number of museums in London. Why do we have so many of them?

Museums reflect the compulsive hoarder that's inside all of us. We tend to keep things, even if they have no use for us anymore - over/undersized clothes, books, dvds, old newspapers, etc. We buy things that do nothing but collect dust, like ceramic souvenirs. And we take thousands of photos even if no one (including ourselves) would be interested to see them again anyway.

There are huge differences however, between our collection of useless stuff and museums. Firstly, museums employ curators to look after their collections. Also, thousands of people flock museums everyday. In contrast, our private collections get much less attention. They usually do nothing but lie around just taking up space in our room.

Why do we value things that can be of no practical use for us anymore that we keep them? That's because we value our history, and our hoarded items are pieces of that memorable past. Those clothes remind us that we were once skinny or thick. Our books and dvds tell us that we have read and seen quite a lot of interesting things. Old newspapers and photos are the ones that really capture our history, either by journalists or our camera.

Maybe it's time to let go - donate, recycle or throw away - our collection of unnecessary stuff.
As much as they can remind us of our past, keeping too many of them for too long would only clutter our present.

Forgotten What I've Read

2011-12-31T13:56:00.001Z

Here are the top 11 books I read in 2011. Don't ask me what I've learned from them - most of their contents have been lost into my unconscious mind.

1. The Republic by Plato
2. The Hero of a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
3. Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
4. Ethics by Baruch Spinoza
5. Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes
6. Memories, Dreams and Reflections by Carl Jung
7. The Wealth of Nations (I-III) by Adam Smith
8. Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant
9. Public Opinion by Walter Lippmann
10. The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
11. Symposium and The Death of Socrates by Plato

If there is one thing I've learned from these books, it is that stoicism rules.

Happy new year 2012!

p/s: Do not worry if the world is going to end in 2012, or even if it doesn't. If our conscience is clear and if we live life for the present, then we are always ready to face our death - for what is death but a prolonged sleep? If we've been good, then there should be no nightmares for us, and whatever will happen to us when we are awoken, let God be the Judge!

No News is..

2011-12-08T21:10:00.001Z

..good news.

Knowing That I Don't

2011-11-28T16:54:00.001Z

Dante's Destination

2011-11-15T22:37:00.001Z

As he was growing tired of climbing the steep mountain to reach Heaven, Dante begged his guide:

"How far we have to journey: for the hill

Mounts higher, than this sight of mine can mount."

Thus his guide replied:

"Such is this steep ascent,

That it is ever difficult at first.

But more a man proceeds, less evil grows.

When pleasant it shall seem to thee, so much

That upward going shall be easy to thee

As in a vessel to go down the tide,

Then of this path thou wilt have reach'd the end.

There hope to rest thee from thy toil."

Then as they continued their journey, at one point, Dante suddenly realized that his steps were getting lighter and easier to take. He asked:

"Say, master, of what heavy thing have I

Been lightened, that scarce aught the sense of toil

Affects me journeying?"

His guide then answered him:

"When sin's broad characters,
that yet remain upon thy temples,
though well nigh effaced, shall be, as one is, all clean razed out,
Then shall thy feet by heartiness of will be so overcome,
they not alone shall feel no sense of labour,
but delight much more shall wait them,
urged along their upward way."

-----
Quotes from Divine Comedy by Dante (1265-1321)

Work Around Procrastination

2011-11-14T15:57:00.001Z

From An Ideology To A Cult

2011-11-09T10:19:00.002Z

As a huge fan of the mythologist Joseph Campbell, I was really excited when I found out that a documentary film about his ideas are playing in selected cinemas in the US. When I was watching the trailer (below), I suddenly realized how close this admiration of Joseph Campbell has been turning into a cult of its own.

Having said that, I still recommend you his book, "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" and I still admire his works. However, like any other great books, revolutionary ideas and personalities of the past, the process of turning these into cults - ie. blind devotion to ideas, beliefs and rigid observation of rituals - always begin with widespread misreading of those originally reasonable ideas, through secondary interpretation (interpret the interpretation, or, comments on the commentaries).

When a cult is established, its followers usually never bother to read the primary source - the original work - where the first definition of terms and ideas are established by the author. For example, in Campbell's case, if you only watch the film, read my comments of his work and just quotes from his books, I don't think you can fully grasp his ideas yet. You might even imagine this to be just another new-age self-help scheme - like "The Secret" - only with a different tagline: "Follow your bliss", and I don't blame you for that. Some might even fall into such scheme.

Ironically, the genius of Joseph Campbell was in his realization that all myths, folklores, and religions simply point toward the attempt to understand human existence and making sense of daily life, and the literal or historical truths behind these are irrelevant. Far from trying to establish a new form of myth, his focus was more on the study of the established ones. Of course, his thoughts were not formed out of vacuum, as they often refer to findings in psychoanalysis, especially of Carl Jung.

Now if you have read this far, let me reward you with a token of appreciation, because I know not many people would do so. The trailer below is for the documentary film I mentioned above, called "Finding Joe". It's up to you to watch it, read the book, or do something else, useful or otherwise. Follow your bliss!

Finding Joe - Trailer V.7 from pat solomon on Vimeo.

The Lure of Anarchy

2011-10-23T12:51:00.000+01:00

What does freedom mean? Maybe we could ask the Libyans. With Gaddafi's death, they have finally attained freedom from his rule. And so in other Arab countries we see their people fighting for freedom from the rule of their despotic leaders - a phenomenon recognized as the Arab Spring. Egypt is now free from Mubarak, Tunisia from Ben Ali, and now Libya from Gaddafi.

What we also learn from the news recently, is that on the streets of New York, and in many parts of Europe, anti-capitalist protests are taking place in response to the financial crisis, which is squarely blamed on greedy bankers and evil manipulators of the financial institution. Have we become enslaved by capitalism?

So what is freedom? To me the best definition was given by Emile Durkheim, a French sociologist, "To be free is not to do what one pleases, it is to be master of oneself."

What we must realize, is that freedom from one system, does not entail total freedom from any system - it can only be followed by the rule of another. As what Thomas Hobbes, an English philosopher, wrote in his book, Leviathan in 1651,

Cover of the book I'm reading, Leviathan (1651)

"[Whosoever] thinking sovereign power too great, will seek to make it less, must subject himself, to the power, that can limit it; that is to say, to a greater [power]"

Thus we observe that tyrannical rule is inevitable in every communist state, because to impose the communist economic system (common ownership of all property) it requires a government with unlimited power to restrain men's natural impulse to have all things for himself.

On the other hand, capitalism (rights to own property), which is practised in democracies, breeds greed and inequality. Hence, we are lured to anarchy (absolute freedom from a central authority).

Fortunately we are reminded by Hobbes, not to fall into this trap of embracing anarchy, in the same paragraph of his book that I have quoted above, that:

"[Of] unlimited power, men may imagine many evil consequences, yet the consequences of [not having this authority], which is perpetual war of every man against his neighbour, are much worse. The condition of man in this life shall never be without inconveniences"

Malaysia Boleh!

2011-09-16T07:27:00.001+01:00

Pride & Perseverance

2011-09-15T15:56:00.000+01:00

Listen to this.
It begins with a big challenge.
Then it continues for 9 minutes with pride and perseverance.
And finally, it ends with acceptance.

Awesome Covers

2011-09-13T17:11:00.001+01:00

Challenge Completed

2011-08-28T00:24:00.002+01:00

Voltaire (1694-1778) - French writer and philosopher

Earlier this year, I challenged myself to read 50 books throughout 2011. I have always set to follow the path of those who came before me - to study their wisdom, heed their advice, and learn from their mistakes - by reading what they have put down in paper. Of course, not all sages wrote books. Some of those that I read were published posthumously (after the author has passed away); others, were not received well when they were first published; while others were popular right from the beginning.

Last night, in one of my journeys in the London Underground, I completed this challenge - as I read the closing paragraph of a satire entitled Candide (1759) by Voltaire.

"All that is very well," answered Candide, "but let us cultivate our garden."

It is story of a young man named Candide, who was taught that all in life is good - only humans make it bad. He truly admired his teacher and accepted his philosophy wholeheartedly - but then something happened. Later, Candide found it difficult to hold on to this blind optimism, as misery and tragedy befell him and almost everyone around him - including his teacher. Fortunately, it was not a sad ending for him - but his was not a truly happy ending either.

All these books that I read this year have been nonfiction - except the last one, Candide. This change of genre may be a sign to my future reading list. I wonder where it will take me next.

....

One Year Abroad

2011-08-15T08:01:00.007+01:00

It's almost unbelievable.

I have already spent one year away from home.

Then again, I have never truly left home - it is where I am.

Of course I love my family, and I do miss them.

It's been a year since we last hugged and kissed each other.

I also miss my friends whom I have not met for a year and I'd love to spend time with.

But I'm not saddened by these thoughts.

That's because love is not mere hugs and kisses.

Love is not mere company and embrace.

Love is the sacred bond that traverses infinite space and time.

Love is not to be returned.

It can only be initiated.

London Riots - A Black Swan Event

2011-08-11T23:44:00.004+01:00

Despite any attempt to make sense of the recent unrest in London streets, I think we should admit that it had caught everyone by surprise. It had a great impact on many people - especially the victims of looters, muggers and rioters; and also to the police, and the UK government - that we all wonder why we didn't expect this to happen at all.

There was a time when the Europeans thought that black swans do not exist, as they had never seen one - until they 'discover' them in Australia.

Nassim Nicholas Taleb had a name for the unexpected, highly significant, retrospectively predictable event: the black swan. In his book, The Black Swan, he discussed the impact of the highly improbable; and since it pervades history, how are we to live with these uncertainties. It's futile, he said, to make predictions about the future, as we can never truly understand the full force of history.

However, we can try to account for all possible futures, but accept what then happen and admit our ignorance of its causes. Just remember that even those with the smallest probabilities can occur - and those that are most probable, do not necessarily happen. With that in mind, I think we can live our lives happily discovering the good surprises that come, and not get badly injured by the unpredictable harmful events as we are mindful of its possibility.

Who would have imagined that suddenly in many streets of London, groups of young 'rioters' go rogue - smashing windows, looting shops, and burning them down? Could we have anticipated the riots and prevented the unrest from getting to such a massive scale? Well, I think not. Maybe the police could have taken a stronger stance against the rioters; Maybe the kids could have been better educated and had better parenting; Maybe the government could have tackled poverty and social inequalities better. They didn't - but we should not be quick as to blame them on all that had happened.

The Power of Love

2011-07-23T18:07:00.003+01:00

"Hate is increased by being returned, but can be destroyed by love"

Ethics (1677)

Baruch Spinoza

JC - GT

2011-07-15T16:52:00.003+01:00

Not a Morning Person? This Quote Might Help

2011-07-04T22:53:00.002+01:00

" In the morning when thou risest unwillingly, let this thought be present- I am rising to the work of a human being. Why then am I dissatisfied if I am going to do the things for which I exist and for which I was brought into the world? Or have I been made for this, to lie in the bed-clothes and keep myself warm?- But this is more pleasant.- Dost thou exist then to take thy pleasure, and not at all for action or exertion? Dost thou not see the little plants, the little birds, the ants, the spiders, the bees working together to put in order their several parts of the universe? And art thou unwilling to do the work of a human being, and dost thou not make haste to do that which is according to thy nature?- But it is necessary to take rest also.- It is necessary: however nature has fixed bounds to this too: she has fixed bounds both to eating and drinking, and yet thou goest beyond these bounds, beyond what is sufficient; yet in thy acts it is not so, but thou stoppest short of what thou canst do. So thou lovest not thyself, for if thou didst, thou wouldst love thy nature and her will. But those who love their several arts exhaust themselves in working at them unwashed and without food; but thou valuest thy own own nature less than the turner values the turning art, or the dancer the dancing art, or the lover of money values his money, or the vainglorious man his little glory. And such men, when they have a violent affection to a thing, choose neither to eat nor to sleep rather than to perfect the things which they care for. But are the acts which concern society more vile in thy eyes and less worthy of thy labour? "

Marcus Aurelius

Meditations (written in 167 AD)

Why the Movie SENNA is Rated 100% Fresh

2011-06-25T23:09:00.008+01:00

Let me re-quote Joseph Campbell (I've done this before, twice!) from his revolutionary work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, to show you that Senna has what all the best movies have in common: a familiar plot about the hero as deftly described by Campbell in that book. If you've watched Senna, you'd know what I mean.

The mythological hero, setting forth from his commonday hut or castle, is lured, carried away, or else voluntarily proceeds, to the threshold of adventure.

There he encounters a shadow presence that guards the passage. The hero may defeat or conciliate this power and go alive into the kingdom of the dark (brother-battle, dragon-battle; offering, charm), or be slain by the opponent and descend in death (dismemberment, crucifixion).

Beyond the threshold, then, the hero journeys through a world of unfamiliar yet strangely intimate forces, some of which severely threaten him (tests), some of which give magical aid (helpers).

When he arrives at the nadir of the mythological round, he undergoes a supreme ordeal and gains his reward.

The triumph may be represented as the hero’s sexual union with the goddess-mother of the world (sacred marriage), his recognition by the father-creator (father atonement), his own divination (apotheosis), or again - if the powers have remained unfriendly to him – his theft of the boon he came to gain (bride-theft, fire-theft); intrinsically it is an expansion of consciousness and therewith of being (illumination, transfiguration, freedom).

The final work is that of return. If the powers have blessed the hero, he now sets forth under their protection (emissary); if not, he flees and is pursued (transformation flight, obstacle flight).

At the return threshold the transcendental powers must remain behind; the hero re-emerges from the kingdom of dread (return, resurrection).

The boon that he brings restores the world (elixir).

Essentially, we all want to be told the same old story again and again.

....

100 Before Graduation

2011-06-15T18:36:00.000+01:00

The complete list by guardian.co.uk

Well at least I have done five, 95 to go!