Page 7 - NAMAH-Oct-2016

Moving Forward

There are two views we may have about Nature. One is that it is a mechanical energy
and like any other physical and mechanical energy it can be harnessed and manipulated.
The more we can learn the laws governing its processes, the more we can utilise and
manipulate our world through it. But there is another view of Nature. It sees Nature not
as mechanical energy but as a Conscious-Force, a Power that seems mechanical only on its
surfaces but acts as if there is a great wisdom hidden within it. The elaborate and intricate
processes, the complex adjustments and adaptations, the astounding far-sightedness even
in its random acts, the manifestations of beauty and joy with a variety of colours and
patterns and designs, give the impression of a master artist at play with forms.

Thus seen, Nature appears as a ‘being’ at once masculine and feminine, that is playing
out the script of life according to a preordained plan. The magnitude of the script, the
huge loops of time through which the drama runs, the multi-dimensional theatre of
Space with its ever-changing lights and sounds reflecting the moment’s mood, the many
actors and characters playing out endless scenes in a ceaseless story of mega-scale and
grand gigantic proportions, is indeed appalling as well as humbling.

And then steps onto this grand theatre of sorts, her most intricate and complex character
called Man with a most challenging role to play. Man is at once the hero and the villain,
the climax as well as the anti-climax, the turning point as also the culminating chapter
in a vast and tremendous epic. But to play our part best we too must learn to play with
Nature. The secret lies neither in treating her as a mechanical energy that can be tamed
by science and technology nor in being appalled by the immensity of her program but to
be with her as a lover and friend, on equal terms, as partners in the great game of life.

To fear Nature is to lose the delight of her play. To tie her down by our instruments is to
be satisfied with small gains. To those who forcibly try to pluck out her secrets she retorts
with fury and force beyond measure. But to those who love her and play with her she
often lets down her guard and reveals the deepest secrets hidden within her tremendous
bosom.

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