Theological and Philosophical Monologue of a Photon

8/14/2019 Theological and Philosophical Monologue of a Photon

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Theological and philosophical 1

Monologue of a Photon

May be to compound the derision of my sub-microscopic size, I am shot at acolossal speed in the vast chasm of the space so that I can even not have a proper feel of

the surroundings and the self. I just sweep across, too fast to be noticed or to notice subtly

anything that comes in my path. The privileges to have a respite, to recline and to resthave been snatched from me since my birth. My wings were in full swing when I started

understanding. I originated from an inferno in a star you can trace back to on my wake.

And we were zillions of us, burning in that voracious fire, scrambling for escape andradiating along all infinite vectors and zooming into the space. Not knowing the

direction, the destiny and the purpose. How true of you too! But like a child gradually

discovers the novelties of his body and soul, I too started discovering myself.

Let me tell you first about my speed. I am hurled at the unknown at such anenormous speed that it took me years together to come to myself and some more to get

accustomed to it. This speed has landed me in universes worst isolation and I am

traveling still deeper. The companions on the adjoining tracks have departed long back

and I am left alone and am drifting alone farther and farther in the fathomless abyss. Iremember my last companion on the neighborhood track deviating from me and soon

becoming invisible, never to be seen again. Are there many other photons like me,traveling to other corners (?) of space, but a little luckier than me to have some company

on fore and aft? I was quite misfortunate in that I was an aberrational deflection from a

surface; cut off from the leaders and the followers. The fellows ahead of me got caught

into a gloomy planet in the path and when I was attempting to catch up with them at myspeed, I could not! I just missed it. And for an era of innumerable years I was leading a

pretty long queue of my brethren when we found that we, all of us, were going to get

salvation in the tail of an errant comet. But even this time, the comet was slow enough tomiss me! Me alone!!

I was in a kind of panic. Hey, where am I going to find some company? Therewere those celestial bodies around and I just wished one of them endeared me and itremained wish. One prays for some soul to rest in peace. But by that if you mean the

peace of my kind, in the corner of the universe with all broken communications, please

dont pray! Solitude is the worst kind of punishment- what is imprisonment?-just anaward of forced solitude! It is frustrating to be alone- to be away from near ones or ones

who could potentially be made near. When I look back at the dim-lit sponge of the

universe from this extremity of it, the uneasiness devours my psyche. What is the end of

this journey? Is there an end at all? I have been traveling since so long and it all has beenmeaningless. I will be reaching farther and farther- but to do what? Why am I being sent

on an abstract mission - to measure the infinite? What does that mean?

Am I imprisoned or am I at large? I may be traveling freely but all my motionsare bound by one or another limits. Am I indeed alone or there are accompaniments that

are transcendental to my faculties?

What is the ulterior motive of the Creator behind this scrimmage? Why has hecreated such an immense space? Calling it immense would also undermine its expanse.

Infinite would be the apt phrase. Why has he created the stupendous material bodies in

that? Why has he littered them in it in a haphazard manner all over? What is the purpose

of the Creator in churning this mass along so diverse of paths, with so wide ranging


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speeds and directions? All thoughts are maddening. And something that is dearer to my

heart why has he chosen this shape, this size, this mlange of characteristics and

ultimately this fate for me?Probably life is not about questioning but about accepting the obvious. Its quite

easy to ask questions and its crazy to find the answers. One may have a lot of

inquisitiveness but the Creator least bothers to address that. How much we can thinkabout the obvious and the abstract? One can devote oneself to the chores of life and

during an odd bit, tired of the chores, may question the intent of the exercise one is going

through in life. Not finding the answers and above that not getting an escape from thechores is certainly vexatious. Here I would love to narrate you a story of an ancient

Gurukul1. Those were the days when human race had managed to look beyond mere

sustenance and the questions like Who am I? were started being raised. An erudite

philosopher was well renowned for his discernment of the purpose of genesis of universeand the mechanism of its operations. And he had a scholar, call him Ninad 2, very

inquisitive about the purpose and reasoning of human existence studying under him. The

scholar would pester the Guru repeated asking him about the purpose of life and

reasoning behind the pattern in which it is lived. The Guru never answered his questionsand bandied them among fellow scholars. The scholar got detached from life, from its

beauty and its ugliness, from its appeals and repulsions, from the force of nature on it andalso from his own ..that might have been.influence on the surroundings. He thought

it otiose to associate himself with the verisimilar obligations of ones existence and

associated volitions. His life was very different for others and very difficult for himself

and he resembled my alter-ego, an isolated photon, on the crowded and busy planet.He finished studies, albeit purposelessly and it was the time to pay the Guru his

Dakshina3. The Guru required him, only him among the 200 odd pupils who got away

with dispensation of some small obligation, to go to a remote backward town in thekingdom and live with a renowned shoemakers family for 6 years and outdo the

shoemaker in his own art. Ninad was a man of his words and very soon he started out for

shoemakers village. To his dismay, the shoemaker had not heard of the Guru and couldemploy Ninad only for carrying out trivial work in exchange of two meals a day. There

was no value of Ninads learning at the Gurukul. The shoemakers family was happy and

loving but the class of living was conspicuously shabby from his family or Gurukul.Ninad was asked to scout for dead animals around the nearby villages in the beginning

and soon he was involved in all elements of the process of tanning a hide into good

quality leather. In the early days of his presence at the shoemakers place, he learned to

manage the commotion out of the conflict between his mental orientation and hissurroundings. He had to carry out the promise made to Guru without any grudge and fuss.

He could not afford to let his invisible disinterest in life affect his promise of excellence

in making footwear. The family of the shoemaker extracted a good amount of labor fromhim but did have a non-manifested understanding of mental struggle Ninad was putting

up and had a very kind heart for him. Tanning of hide required rigorous labor and slowly

Ninad developed a good understanding of the animal lives, animal skins, preservation ofhide, designing and decorating the shoes and sandals. He learned to withstand the stench

1 Place where pupils stayed under the tutelage and guardianship of a Guru at his Kul (place) away from

family to study the scriptures, sciences and arts.2 Literally means a loud, reverberating sound.3 The voluntary gift given to the Guru at the time of convocation, not necessarily defrayal.


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of rotting animals, the pressure of working till late nights when deliveries were required

to make in urgency and everything that a good tanning job entails.

Time passed as the night passes during the sleep. Six years were finished andNinad fulfilled the promise he made to his Guru. He was now a renowned shoemaker in

the area. One day Ninad got an order for making sandals from a Saint who was passing

by the village. The Saint has asked the actual shoemaker to hand over the sandals inperson. Ninad knew it was his Guru. Ninad obediently handed over the sandals to the

Guru and stood in a bowed position in front of him. Guru Said, Ninad, your six years of

service with the shoemaker are finished. You have delivered what you promised me.Now you can go home and lead your usual life.

Ninad said, Guruji, I do not want to go home. I have discovered the answers of the

questions I asked you during my stay here. I want to continue my life here because it is

here that I discovered the meaning of life. We all are sons of the Creator and we are likeHim. He is not sick to hide the secrets of this Creation from us. It is our failure in

appreciating the obvious. Guru was happy to see the unnerved disciple back to normal.

Ninad invited the Guru for his marriage with the daughter of the shoemaker who found it

very difficult to take her eyes off the sturdy sinews of Ninad.My story is no way different. Why should I think that life is meaningless? Why should I

believe that life has no objective? The Creator has an explicit intention to mimic his ownqualities through his creation. Thus each of his creation is endowed with infinite might. It

is the abject failure to discern this power that brings misery in life. Even as a diminutive

photon thrown out of universe I behold the might to pull the universe to me, to destruct it

where it is, to create my own universe or communicate with it with transcendental senses.The path that the creator has chosen for me must have a meaning, a beautiful meaning

and I should know that meaning in my own way or at least I should tread the path

peacefully as I already know how to do it. And if see that the Gods creation is not in theproper shape, I am going to stop and turn back and show the direction of enlightenment

to the universe with my yogic prowess. I challenge everyone here-Who is there to

belittle me, an abject photon?

Theological and Philosophical Monologue of a Photon

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