Infinite possibility !!

Mark Inglis

On Monday, 8 October 2012, i attended a talk by Mark Inglis at the prince of whales lawns at the Taj west end, Bangalore. The occasion was a dinner hosted by the chairman of Mindtree, Subroto Bagchi .
I am not connected with Mindtree in any way. Though the dinner was a Mindtree event, it was very nice of Mr Bagchi to invite me to join him.

Mindtree has recently done some re-branding and their new tagline reads "Welcome to possible" . So, i think there was no better way other than to host Mark Inglis to flag off the new wave of aspiration and inspiration.

Mark Inglis is a living testimony to the age old saying "Where there is a will, there is a way". He is the world's first double amputee to climb the world's highest peak, the Mount Everest.  His story , that he succinctly put in about 70 minutes was full of determination, Passion and above all compassion and humility.

Mark Inglis encountered his ill fate on top of Mount cook in Newzealnad (world's sixth highest peak, 649.00M) at the age of 23. Mark Inglis and his fellow mountaineer Philip Doole were on top of Mount cook when a powerful blizzard pushed the duo into a 4 feet tall ice cave in sub-zero temperature for 13 long days. They had to survive the snowstorm for 13 days with just 5 biscuits. This encounter with the mountains landed Mark Inglis with severe frost bites so much so that both his legs had to be amputated. Mark had shed 31 kilograms in those 13 torturous days. As mark said, every second of the 312 hours that he spent on mount cook, his only thought was "How to survive" .

This encounter with destiny did not stop Mark from attempting more adventures. His love for cycling fetched him a silver medal (Which he carries with him) in the para-Olympic games in Sydney.  This success rekindled his love for the mountains. He set his eyes on mount cook again. He designed and fabricated his own artificial legs (aluminium) that took him on top of mount cook again. Once on top of mount cook, the only other peak in sight for the mark was the majestic Mount Everest.

Aluminium limbs would not work in his expedition to mount Everest. So mark designed carbon limbs. Armed by the new limbs, after 47 days of climbing, Mark was on top of the Mount Everest in May 2006.

Mark is a walking example of another age old adage "look at the opportunities and not at adversities".  He says,with artificial limbs, one cannot get frost-bites. What an attitude!!

On top of Mt Everest 

Mark lost his middle finger of his right hand on his way back from the Everest. Mark wittily added that the finger would have come handy while driving in Bangalore traffic.

Mark had an unfinished job at the base-camp of the Everest on his way back.  He had carried with him an additional pair of artificial limbs. That was for his friend who had lost his legs two decades back. Mark fitted the new limbs to his Sherpa friend. As mark said " Watching his friend walk on the new limbs was more satisfying than standing on the roof of the world."

The entire gathering listened to Mark with awe and applause. It was just impossible to believe that  there was a man in front of us with a pair of aluminium limbs who had climbed the highest peak in the world . As someone remarked, he just climbed it "with his mind".

In addition to his love for the mountains, Mark runs a charitable trust "Limbs4 All". He is also a regular speaker and a owner of an energy drink company.

Mark's story was an inspiration for the gathering who listened with rapt attention in the tranquil lawns . All in all a great evening spent with brilliant company.

"Be More than equal to your next mountain"

.

Interpretations...

Few years back , Winter of 2008 to be precise, i drove to the beautiful hills of kodikanal with best buddies Kiran S.R and Girish Koppad. It was one of the most memorable drives for me. Kiran had come home to India for a vacation. We always make it a point to hit the road whenever he comes to India. We left in the afternoon to reach Dingigul by midnight. The next day we drove to Kodaikanal. 

It was a memorable drive for various reasons. Apart from the beautiful hills and great time with friends, that was one of the first road trips where we discussed philosophy. We had a great lengthy discussion on what is life and why is life and what we end up in life and why for we end up with what we end up? We discussed relationships, failed relationships , desire, marriage , old age  etc. All through the discusion we were accompanied by the magical voice of Sri Vidhabhushan singing naa donakadarenu. 

Many events in early 2008 had got me thinking about what life is all about. I still have no answers to all my questions and i am far far away from even getting a hint for the answer. Anyway i am not writing here about the questions and contractions that has engulfed me for the last few years. 

In the process of my eternal search for truth rather virtual truth , i got introduced to the beautiful world of Kannada literature. (i call  virtual truth because i am not sure if there is really something called as "truth"). 
I got a chance to listen to the great works of stalwarts like Kuvempu, D.R.Bendre, Pu.thi.Narasimhachar, Dr G.S.Shivarudrappa and Gopalakrishna Adiga. Though i have not read anything much about these great men, i am thrilled and mesmerized by the depth of their thought and eloquence of expression. 
I made a couple of trips to Kupalli, the birth place of Rashtrakavi late Dr Kuvempu. Located in the beautiful theerthalli taluk, Kupalli is a must visit for any art or nature lover. I made a trip to Sadhankeri to the house of Varakavi late Dr.Daa.Raa.Bendre. I also visited Pu. thi Naraimhachar's house in Melkote early this year.  

Almost all of the above great men talk about life in general. For example, Dr Dattatreya ramachandra bendre writes "ರಸವೇ ಜನನ  , ವಿರಸ ಮರಣ, ಸಮರಸವೇ ಜೀವನ It roughly translates as "Struggle for harmony through conflict is life" .  Gopala krishna Adiga writes very beautifully that "ಇದು ಬಾಳು ನೋಡು; ಇದ ತಿಳಿದನೆಂದರೂ ತಿಳಿದ ಧೀರನಿಲ್ಲ; ಹಲವುತನದ ಮೈಮರೆಸುವಾಟವಿದು;ನಿಜವು ತೋರದಲ್ಲ !" which roughly translates as "Look, this is life, and no Brave man, despite his claims, has found what life is all about. It reveals myriad intoxicating games, but it won't reveal the truth".

Before i proceed, I must put a disclaimer here that i am no writer or commentator on literary works. I am only trying to put my thoughts with my very limited knowledge and very myopic outlook towards life.

It is very very difficult to dwell to the depth at which these great men think and write. Particularly for laymen like men who have no knowledge about philosophy or literature, it is very difficult to understand the writings of these great men.

Gopala Krisha adiga

Few months back while i was listening to the songs of kuvempu, i found a strange contraction in his view about beauty. I have already written my observation with my limited understanding.  As i have written earlier, it may not be a contradiction after all. It may be just my lack of understanding. 

Few days back,i was listening to a superb piece of poetry by Gopala krishna Adiga. This is the famous "ಯಾವ ಮೋಹನ ಮುರಳಿ ಕರೆಯಿತು" . The poetry goes like this 

   "ಯಾವ ಮೋಹನ ಮುರಳಿ ಕರೆಯಿತು 

ದೂರ ತೀರಕೆ ನಿನ್ನನು

ಯಾವ ಬೃಂದಾವನವು ಸೆಳೆಯಿತೋ
ನಿನ್ನ ಮಣ್ಣಿನ ಕಣ್ಣನು

ಹೂವು ಹಾಸಿಗೆ ಚಂದ್ರ ಚಂದನ
ಬಾಹು ಬಂಧನ ಚುಂಬನ
ಬಯಕೆ ತೋಟದ ಬೇಲಿಯೊಳಗೆ
ಕರಣಗಳದೀ ರಿಂಗಣ

ಸಪ್ತ ಸಾಗರದಾಚೆ ಎಲ್ಲೋ

ಸುಪ್ತ ಸಾಗರ ಕಾದಿದೆ

ಮೊಳೆಯದಲೆಗಳ ಮೂಕ ಮರ್ಮರ

ಇಂದು ಇಲ್ಲಿಗು ಹಾಯಿತೇ

ವಿವಶವಾಯಿತು ಪ್ರಾಣ ಹಾ!

ಪರವಶವು ನಿನ್ನೀ ಚೇತನ

ಇರುವುದೆಲ್ಲವ ಬಿಟ್ಟು

ಇರದುದರೆಡೆಗೆ ತುಡಿವುದೆ ಜೇವನ

ಯಾವ ಮೋಹನ ಮುರಳಿ ಕರೆಯಿತೋ

ಇದ್ದಕಿದ್ದಲೆ ನಿನ್ನನು

ಯಾವ ಬೃಂದಾವನವು ಚಾಚಿತೋ

ತನ್ನ ಮಿಂಚಿನ ಕೈಯನು

ಯಾವ ಮೋಹನ ಮುರಳಿ ಕರೆಯಿತು
ದೂರ ತೀರಕೆ ನಿನ್ನನು ".

The more i listen to this poetry , the more i am drawn into a strange internal philosophical conflict. In a nutshell, the poetry talks bout futility of desire.  But there is no much clarity on what exactly is desire. The concept of "Desire" is subject to countless interpretations depending on which side of the philosophical school you belong to. 

I am not going into my views on desire but i will try and articulate my views on one paragraph from the above poetry which has landed me in a strange contradiction (or confusion?). The paragraph goes 

"ವಿವಶವಾಯಿತು ಪ್ರಾಣ ಹಾ!
ಪರವಶವು ನಿನ್ನೀ ಚೇತನ
ಇರುವುದೆಲ್ಲವ ಬಿಟ್ಟು
ಇರದುದರೆಡೆಗೆ ತುಡಿವುದೆ ಜೇವನ !! " 

In the overall context of the poetry, this paragraph can be subjected to two different interpretations. 

The poet may be trying to say that  Life must be all about leaving what one has and try to search for something what he does not. (That may be truth or a higher calling). That is, a man must look for attainment of higher goals and not long for short term worldly pleasures. 

Another interpretation is that , Life is all about foolishness of ignoring what is present and enjoyable and chasing a futile desire.  That is the poet may be trying to say that a man's life is wasted in his search for something out of his reach at the cost of what he has at his hand. 

But mostly accepted interpretation is the latter one. Looking carefully at the overall context of the poetry, the second interpretation is more appropriate and plausible. 

However, for me there is a confusion since many times i tend to believe that the first interpretation is true and that is what human life must be all about. 

Anyway this is food for thought for me.. 

Before i sign off, my next blog will be about the talk i am  attending tomorrow by  the world's first double amputee mountaineer Mark inglis who climbed the Mount Everest by his mind. 

  "ಯಾವ ಮೋಹನ ಮುರಳಿ ಕರೆಯಿತು "