I AM The Universe: Random Thoughts

Just the other day, Aamanna was reading to me an article by Javed Chaudhry titled ‘Yazid Ke Daur Mein Hussain’ . It was about the brutal murder of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnahs young great grandson at the hands of Pakistan Police back in 1998, when our beloved Mr. Nawaz Sharif was the Prime Minister of this great land. Sikandar Jinnah was picked up by the police when he went out to buy Parathas for Sehri on the 10th of Ramazan. He was tortured to a slow and painful death, which left his stomach in threads, his eyes bloody and the bones in his body crushed. And they were prompt about the murder too! The body was handed over the very next day to his parents, who live in the slum area of Golimar in Karachi.

What is incredibly sad about this is that most of us don’t even know about this. I didn’t know that Quaid-e-Azams only grandson – the last link in this family chain that we owe everything to – was murdered so brutally. There isn’t even a Wikipedia entry for Sikandar Jinnah (Shaheed), except for a brief mention in the Quaid-e-Azam entry. The FIR for the murder was filed two years later, in year 2000, even that only with the help of a retired Brigadier. This is what Sikandars mother, Khursheed Begum had to say:

It was January 9, 1998 and 10th of Ramazan, when my only son, Sikandar Ali Jinnah, 17, went out to a nearby hotel to buy Paratha for ‘Sehri’ but did not return home. We searched for him everywhere that day but could not trace him. The very next day the police called us to Jamshed Quarter Police Station to hand over the body of Sikandar, who had been brutally tortured to death. His body bore marks of torture.” “We ran from pillar to post to seek justice but no one helped us, except Brig (retired) Shamsul Haq Qazi, a resident of Rawalpindi, who came to know about the brutal death of Sikandar through media reports and approached us.

And:

Now, we just wish that not a single citizen of the country experiences such brutalities at the hands of the police and there should be someone in the country, especially the reinstated chief justice, who should rein in the police and ensure that no one suffers at their hands.

The five policemen charged with the murder were sentenced to just five years of imprisonment! And soon enough, they were set free on bail and are now roaming free. They probably have been given promotions by now.

Please, I request you to post about this on your own blog, if you have one, and make more people aware of this tragedy any way that you can.

EDIT: The only online resource I could find was here.

Inspiration. Chance. Fate. Destiny. What a waste. I’ve heard these words spoken so many times without depth that they’ve lost meaning to me. When I was younger, these words seemed larger than life itself – things I thought I’d never understand. And now, it’s not so much as I do understand them, but that I have ceased to want to understand them. I mean, what difference does it make – it’s not like the people using these words understand them anyway.

Keynotes, presentations, lectures and discussions alike, it seems to me that people feel more comfortable (read confident of themselves) when they use these words. They feel that maybe when they use these words, the audience will lose themselves in the words rather than what the speakers have to say, somehow cloaking their inadequacies.

Maybe this is true, or maybe I’m just paranoid about the abilities of others. But the fact of the matter is, it has become a rule of thumb for speaking in public:

When in doubt, say “Fate, Destiny, Chance!”

When I die,
And you come to mourn by me,
And perhaps shed a guilty tear,
And no one says a word,
Of what I left behind,
I need you to know,
That in my pocket,
There will be a wrinkled old paper,
With your name on it!
An aging envelope,
With a picture of you,
You never knew I took!
A few scented letters I never sent,
The folds cutting through,
The fragile smell no more than a day old!

And a few poems,
That you always loved,
But never understood!

Perhaps that day,
These foolish things that may remind you of my own,
May serve their purpose!

As he lay on the dark, teak bed, his thoughts gently drifted to the chaos in his heart. He began to wonder if life would be any different if he studied any harder, or if he’d make more time to pray and read the Qur’an? Would life be better if he worked harder to be nice to other people? And would there be less distress in his life if he lived a less lavish life?

Time on his Rs.4,000 Cruiser swooshed past as he wondered what to change. Would he feel less disturbed if he didn’t listen to music on a Rs.13,000 car stereo, or a Rs.28,000 home stereo? Would it make him feel better if he discarded the Rs.95,000 Macintosh for a cheaper computer? Would his feet feel less guilty if he did away with the Rs.6,500 San Miguels beneath his feet? If he’d speak into something less fancy than his Rs.32,000 smartphone? Would he feel lighter if I he travelled the public bus instead of the Rs.7 lacs compact?. . . .

. . . And would he feel more comforted if he wanted no more!? Maybe. But every night in the dark, teak bed, he lies wondering, his thoughts gently drifting – to the chaos in his heart!

Note: This topic is much too long for me to write out in one sitting with my current engagements, so I’ll be posting two cards at a time, thrice a week, inshAllah.

Symbolism attracts the human mind. We, due to reasons unknown, find pointers more interesting than the actual parameters. Perhaps because the intertwined, overlapped layers of mystery and intrigue reflect in the true magic of life. Perhaps because we find comfort in the knowledge of complex things?

I’ve always been interested in symbolism, but my interest hit a new level when I started watching HBO’s Carnivale. The tarot deck – often associated with gypsies who have used them for fortune telling since the mid-nineteenth century – is one of the deepest examples of symbolism in everyday life. Simple images – of the sun and the moon, maybe – can mean so much! Fortune telling is a whole other business, but I enjoy learning how different symbols used on them are associated with mythology. So, I decided to write a bit about tarot symbols, and maybe discuss a few of them.

The symbols on the cards are not taken from one specific culture, but are a conglomerate of ideas from different cultures and ancient religions, of which Greek and Roman sources are most dominant – as can be seen from their links with Greek and Roman mythology.

The earliest specimens of tarot cards that have been found were made from blocks of wood, and many were hand-painted, although some were printed using ancient techniques.

The original tarot deck was a set of 78 cards. There were 4 suites of 14 numbered cards each, and 22 other un-numbered cards. The four suites are commonly Cups, Swords, Staffs (or Wands) and Pentacles (or Coins). The 4 suites collectively are called the Major Arcana, and the 22 remaining cards are called the Minor Arcana. The word Arcana is derived from the Latin word arcanus, and means a secret or a mystery. The major arcana are our main interest here, because these are the cards that carry the symbols.

The Fool
The fool is numbered both as 0 and as 22, which gives it the unique resemblance to the circle of life, which is a cyclic process, with both ends connected, as the number 0 and 22 overlapped, the fool is the pivot in the cycle, that connects the circle. The zero is also important because without it, our mathematical system would collapse. Thus the fool is a representation of the pivotal points in life, which is both the end and the beginning. The sun above him represents the continual growth of the engergy of life, which gives us the concept of infinity, since the circle has no end! The white rose in his hand represent the purity, and his commitment, to his desires – the fool only listens to his own voice, because he is the light.

The Magician
The magician is numbered 1 – the number of creation. In this way, the magician is objectivity realized – the notion that everything is possible. The symbol of infinity over his head indicated his limitless powers towards this notion. Both the symbol of infinity, and the fact that 1 comes after 0 (the fool), indicate that the magician creates out of nothingness. All the tools he needs are on the table in front of him – the cup, wand, pentacle and the sword. These are the suites of the minor arcana.
The magician stands with one arm pointing towards the sky, and one toward the ground – as above, as below! The inner white robe indicates purity, which is fastened to him by a serpent. His outer garment is red, suggestive of passion and desire, but is open, which suggestes that it can be shed when necessary. The white and red flowers on the ground indicate the same thing.

Two more cards coming this week!