'THE MAP IS NOT THE TERRITORY ' ( Excerpts -Tao of Physics -- Chapter 2 ) MODERN PHYSICS vis-a-vis EASTERN MYSITICISM

From the unreal lead me to the real!
From darkness lead me to light!
From death lead me to immortality!
—Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad

Before studying the parallels between modern physics and Eastern mysticism, we have to deal with the question of how we can make any comparison at all between an exact science, expressed in the highly sophisticated language of modern mathematics, and spiritual disciplines which are mainly based on meditation and insist on the fact that their insights cannot be communicated verbally. 

What we want to compare are the statements made by scientists and Eastern mystics about their knowledge of the world. To establish the proper framework for this comparison, we must firstly ask ourselves what kind of 'knowledge' we are talking about; does the Buddhist monk from Angkor Wat or Kyoto mean the same thing by 'knowledge' as the physicist from Oxford or Berkeley? Secondly, what kind of statements are we going to compare? What are we going to select from the experimental data, equations and theories on the one side, and from the religious scriptures, ancient myths, or philosophical treatises on the other? This chapter is intended to clarify these two points: the nature of the knowledge involved and the language in which this knowledge is expressed.

ARE WE MASTERS OF OUR OWN FATE ? ---- ( Excerpts From " We , The Nation - THE LOST DECADE " by Nani . A . Palkhiwala

Some of the greatest men have believed that certain events in their lives were preordained and that certain individuals had the rare gift or precognition.

An example is that of Dr S Radhakrishnan, a professor of philosophy, who later became President of India. If you read the life of Dr Radhakrishnan by his son Gopal, you will come across the following passage on page 143:

'Sometime during these years when Radhakrishnan was spending the summers in Europe, he met Cheiro, the best-known palmist of his day. Cheiro studied Radhakrishnan's palms and forecast that he would reach the top, be the head of a State, but would before his death, lose his mind. Both these prophecies seemed at the time so wildly off the mark that they became a family joke.'

The above passage bears eloquent testimony to two facts -- preordination and the gift of precognition by rare individuals.

One of the most famous incidents is that of Winston Churchill who had a lucky escape from a bomb attack in a car. On that day he happened to choose to sit on the far side from his usual place. Lady Churchill asked him


why, 'I do not know', he replied. The he said, 'Of course I know. Something said to me 'Stop' before I reached the car door which was held open for me. It then seemed to me that I was told I should open the door on the other side and get in and sit there.' Needless to add, Churchill escaped unhurt.

On the subject of destiny, let me state what I believe: 

First, I believe that the basic pattern of an individual's or a nation's life is pre-determined. 

Excerpts From 'The Book of Mirdad' By Mikhail Naimy

The Strange Story of a Monastery Which Was Once Called the Ark

"Logic is immaturity weaving its nets of gossamer wherewith it aims to catch the behemoth of knowledge. Logic is a crutch for the cripple, but a burden for the swift of foot and a greater burden still for the wise." 

Love is the law of God

MIRDAD

Love is the law of God. You live that you may learn to love. You love that you may learn to live. No other lesson is required of Man. And what os ot to love but for the lover to absorb forever the beloved so that the twain be one? And whom, or what, is one to love? Is one to choose a certain leaf upon the Tree of Life and pour upon it all one`s heart? What of the branch that bears the leaf? What of the stem that holds the branch? What of the bark that shields the stem? What of the roots that feed the bark, the stem, the branches and the leaves? What of the soil embosoming the roots? What of the Sun,and sea, and air that fertilize the soil? If one small leaf upon a tree be worthy of your love how much more so the entire tree in its entirity? The love that singles out a fraction of the whole foredooms itself to grief. You say But there be leaves and leaves upon a single tree. Some are healthy, some are sick; some are beautiful, some, ugly; some are giants , some are dwarfs. How can we help but pick and choose. I say to you,

--" PUNCH LINES " -- A Heart full of Burden By T.N Seshan --The 10th Chief Election Commissioner of India

"Do you know how elections are run in this country? Liquor for the father, cloth for the mother and food for the baby."

"In a booth in Bihar where the voting starts at 7 o'clock in the morning and at 7.15, 105 percent of the votes have been cast."


"If equality of hatred is a test of my partiality, I will pass with flying colours"


"Indian elections are the eighth wonder of the world. There are 55 Crores of votes. There are 800,000 polling booths and each polling booth has a minimum of five people. So there are 4 million people working for the elections."

"And there are rolls which are extremely defective. There are names which appear five times, there are names which don't appear at all, there are dead names which are still alive and there are live names which are dead."

About the power Mongering politicians:
" Have you ever heard of anybody relinquishing power after Shri Rama? Shri Rama is the only last known instance of somebody relinquishing power voluntarily."