What Difference Does It Make?

This week I am too busy to write something. So publishing this old story, which is definitely one of my favourites.

This true life story is about a little boy and the famous writer Lauren Eisely. Lauren writes that he was on holiday by the sea side when one night there was a big storm. Very early next morning as he was walking on the beach he saw that among the debris of the storm were literally hundreds of starfish which had been thrown up on the sand the previous night.
As he walked along, Lauren saw someone in the distance doing what looked to him, like a dance. The person was bending down and standing up and moving along as he did this. As Lauren neared him, he saw that it was a little boy who was picking up starfish from the beach and was throwing them back into the sea. Lauren was a man of the world with a lot of education and life experience.

He went up to the boy and asked, “What are you doing?”

The boy said, “I’m throwing these starfish back into the sea so that they don’t die. They can’t move on the sand and if the sun comes out, they will dry out and die. So I am throwing them back so that they will live.”

Lauren says, he laughed at this statement. He then proceeded to put things in ‘perspective’ for the boy... So Lauren said to him, “Look, do you realize that on this beach alone there are literally thousands of starfish? And then of course there are hundreds of beaches in the world, on which are thrown up millions of starfish in every storm. You are one kid, throwing one starfish into the sea! For God’s sake, what difference does it make?”

The boy looked at Lauren; he looked at the starfish in his hand, he turned and threw it far into the waves and said to Lauren, “It made a difference to that one!”

Lauren writes, “I walked away and kept walking for a long time. Then I returned to the boy who was still there, picking up and throwing the starfish into the sea. I silently picked up a starfish and threw it into the sea. And we did this together for a long time.”

Characters of Virtues and Vices

I was so moved after reading the below paragraph written by J.D. Hall, a 16th century Bishop of then Norwich. What an eleoquent way of saying that moderation is the key to happiness!!! As I read each words, I realized my ego is gradually melting away and his powerful words are contributing so much to my moral economy. I was simply overwhelmed by the wisodm of this 16th century man and devastatingly underwhelmed by the discovery that how little did I know. Especially the last sentence highlighted in blue was an eye-opener.

Here is the extract from Hall's 16th century Book: "Characters of Virtues and Vices" . The English is slightly different it seems.....but that is ok given the glory of the wisdom it carries.

"He is an happy man, that hath learned to read himself, more than all books; and hath so taken out this lesson, that he can never forget it: that knows the world, and cares not for it; that, after many traverses of thoughts, is grown to know what he may trust to; and stands now equally armed for all events: that hath got the mastery at home; so as he can cross his will without a mutiny, and so please it that he makes it not a wanton: that, in earthly things, wishes no more than nature; in spiritual, is ever graciously ambitious: that, for his condition, stands on his own feet, not needing to lean upon the great; and can so frame his thoughts to his estate, that when he hath least, he cannot want, because he is as free from desire, as superfluity: that hath seasonably broken the headstrong restiness of prosperity; and can now manage it, at pleasure: upon whom, all smaller crosses light as hailstones upon a roof; and, for the greater calamities, he can take them as tributes of life and tokens of love; and, if his ship be tossed, yet he is sure his anchor is fast. If all the world were his, he could be no other than he is; no whit gladder of himself, no whit higher in his carriage; because he knows, that contentment lies not in the things he hath, but in the mind that values them. He is an happy man, that hath learned to read himself, more than all books; and hath so taken out this lesson, that he can never forget it: that knows the world, and cares not for it; that, after many traverses of thoughts, is grown to know what he may trust to; and stands now equally armed for all events: that hath got the mastery at home; so as he can cross his will without a mutiny, and so please it that he makes it not a wanton: that, in earthly things, wishes no more than nature; in spiritual, is ever graciously ambitious: that, for his condition, stands on his own feet, not needing to lean upon the great; and can so frame his thoughts to his estate, that when he hath least, he cannot want, because he is as free from desire, as superfluity: that hath seasonably broken the headstrong restiness of prosperity; and can now manage it, at pleasure: upon whom, all smaller crosses light as hailstones upon a roof; and, for the greater calamities, he can take them as tributes of life and tokens of love; and, if his ship be tossed, yet he is sure his anchor is fast. If all the world were his, he could be no other than he is; no whit gladder of himself, no whit higher in his carriage; because he knows, that contentment lies not in the things he hath, but in the mind that values them.

Was this the quest for incest?

The austrian incident is something far beyond my comprehension. There are extensive media coverage on the issue and I have read almost everything, every single word written in the british news paper "guardian" about this cruellest incident I have ever come across in my life. Analysts and experts are still in the process of soul searching to understand the whats and whys of the episode. As type this, my head is burning like a furnace and my hands are ice cold. I am in a state of utter confusion and emotional distress.

The story for sure challenges the nazi concencntration camps Austria witnessed before in the degree of horror it reflects. Joseph Fritzl - 73 years old now, a father of seven children kpet captive of his daughter for 24 years in a cellar, repeatedly raped her and fathered (simultaneously grandfathered!) her seven children, without being noticed by anybody! Still unfathomable it to me how could a human being do this.

Life is bizzare to a degree much higher than what I understood so far. Currently, as I could cognize it, here is a war of ideas in my mind about morality, sex, mind and life. I find it very difficult to conclude something. As a matter of fact, this incident can be cited as the pinnacle of tragedy in human history itself. I am not able to see the letters on the keyboard as well as the computer screen, because just for a moment I thought about the life of those children of Elizabath Fritzl. Undoubtedly, the life of thos children in cellar hammer more hardly on my mind than the father's rape of his daughter.

What might have gone wrong fundamentally? Is it man's insatiable quest for sex? I guess no. If this was the reason, Joseph Fritzl had more easy options than going for this hideously ugly activity. Also, experiencing sex without morality attached to it is no more important than urination or shitting (Forgive me prostitutes, I know it is not that way for you)! I guess the explanation could point to a complex interply between mind and moral, perceptions and conceptions, reality and illusions. What I could conceive from the media reports is that, Joseph Fritzl had two major compartments in his mind -- the one at the top enabled him to live the normal family life externally and the other on bottom (his mind's cellar compartmnet!) enabled him to live his beast life in cellar!

Most of what I will say about this incident is already said by Nicci Gerrard in her much appreciated article "A monster from the pages fo Grimm tale".

Link to the article:http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/04/austria.internationalcrime