The Secret Adversary

A few years ago, I developed an inexplicable interest in listening to Gospel music and since then, have owned a few cassettes of the same. It is most enjoyable when it gets your full attention, so I listen during long drives alone. The other day, I got one such opportunity. The following lines were playing:

“This world is not my home, I’m just a-passing through.
My treasures are laid up - somewhere beyond the blue…”

As usual, a special calm appeared to descend and a sense of safety, comfort, and peace wrapped all around. Later, as first the song and then the drive ended, I lingered in the parking lot a little while more, thinking and rethinking those lines. Much later, I remembered some earlier Chowk interacts, and marveled at the irony.

It is quite surprising - the amount of vitriol that can pass these web pages. This is not news to discriminating readers of these spaces (there must be some, for I did not pile up hundreds of hits by myself!) I sometimes wonder if individuals who carry on with bitter exchanges were to physically confront each other, would those words remain the same? I seriously doubt it. For one thing, most of them are likely products of a certain economic class and hopefully brought up with a modicum of training on how to empathize with fellow humans. They would at least pause and reflect just a moment longer before letting go of those words – words which can not be recalled (unlike these i-logs, which can always be deleted at the pleasure of the contributor!)

Words are special gifts to humans and no other specie has quite that ability. Sure, they facilitate basic communication, they describe the physical around us, but they also open a window to their creator’s soul and penetrate into ours - reaching deep inside us. Merely a few weak vibrations in the air media or a bunch of tiny pixels on a fluorescent screen, they carry the wisdom of ages, the wrath of gods, the fear of the unthinkable, the marvel of creation, and the magic to give light, life, and hope!

And also, the power of death!

The anonymity conferred through the internet (in reality a myth) and the physical separation from the objects of derision can provide a false sense of invincibility like no other! How much easier it is to run somebody down, to shoot one into smithereens, to run a spear or dagger to cut one to pieces, just as long as you don’t have to look one into the eye while you accomplish that heroic feat! Yes, hack them all, a whole class of humans, the men, the women, the children, one and all till not a single sample of the offending group is left to invite your ire! Day in and day out, this macabre ritual of deadly dancing occurs right here in our faces and the crowd of jackals gathers all around and applauds. The duelists have studied and mastered every little move of the opponent and are so intimately familiar with them that they will never be taken by shock or surprise, no matter what ensues! This adversary is fully known, except in real time! One can never loose a battle to him!

Yet, there is another adversary which always defeats us! This adversary is always secret. He ensures that the fruits of victory will always elude us. He contaminates the wells that we drink our success from. He sours the pitch, making sure that no matter how accurately we hit our targets, we still lose the game because the ball we throw is a dud! He always wins because he, and only he, understands the falsity of our moves!

We rarely see our secret adversary for he is truly invisible, except in the mirror!

That Gospel singer went on to his real home many years ago, but the clarity of his message has not lost any resonance! Sometimes, I feel so thankful!

(Note: This i-log was posted sometime in April 2005 and was one of my first i-logs. It was also the beginning of a series whose titles were like beads all connected with a single string. The beads ran in approximate chronological order of the original titles.)