Came across this today. Stanley Kubrick in an interview with Playboy in 1969. Felt like my own muddled thoughts put into words. Thank you Stanley Kubrick!
Playboy: If life is so purposeless, do you feel its worth living?
Kubrick: Yes, for those who manage somehow to cope with our mortality. The very meaninglessness of life forces a man to create his own meaning. Children, of course, begin life with an untarnished sense of wonder, a capacity to experience total joy at something as simple as the greenness of a leaf; but as they grow older, the awareness of death and decay begins to impinge on their consciousness and subtly erode their joie de vivre (a keen enjoyment of living), their idealism – and their assumption of immortality.
As a child matures, he sees death and pain everywhere about him, and begins to lose faith in the ultimate goodness of man. But if he’s reasonably strong – and lucky – he can emerge from this twilight of the soul into a rebirth of life’s élan (enthusiastic and assured vigour and liveliness).
Both because of and in spite of his awareness of the meaninglessness of life, he can forge a fresh sense of purpose and affirmation. He may not recapture the same pure sense of wonder he was born with, but he can shape something far more enduring and sustaining.
The most terrifying fact about the universe is not that it is hostile but that it is indifferent; but if we can come to terms with this indifference and accept the challenges of life within the boundaries of death – however mutable man may be able to make them – our existence as a species can have genuine meaning and fulfilment. However vast the darkness, we must supply our own light.
This post started with this video. A very, very brave bunch of guys making a satirical point on the current state of Pakistan. Needless to say, I loved the song.
There was a reference to a certain Abdus Salam in the video and how no one remembers him any more, which led me to Google and after 30 minutes or so of reading online I discovered a great man called Abdus Salam!
Abdus Salam was a physicist and Pakistan’s one and only Nobel Laureate. He was also the first Muslim Nobel Laureate in the sciences, although Pakistan doesn’t recognise him as a Muslim! Because he belongs to the Ahmadiyya sect of Muslims who do not believe that Muhammad was the last prophet, for which they are persecuted all over the world and especially in Pakistan.
His extra-ordinary journey from very humble beginnings in a small town in Pakistan to the Nobel Prize is awe-inspiring. So is his apparent ease in striding the two dissimilar worlds of science and religion. A devout Muslim, anecdotes abound about his encounters with Bertrand Russell and Einstein and the resulting discussions on reason and faith. Though he saw both religion and science as essential to explaining the world around and inside of us, he did make it clear that “the validity of a scientific truth can be adjudicated only according to criteria internal to science and not by appeal to religious, metaphysical, or aesthetic considerations”. But his greatest qualities were his humility, his incessant efforts at creating opportunities for research for scientists from developing nations and his undying devotion to his roots.
His efforts led to the founding of the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy (now called the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics in his honour), under the aegis of the IAEA and now UNESCO. In his own words,
The Centre provides the possibility for scientists to remain in their own country for the bulk of the time, but come to the Centre to carry out research for three months or so. They meet people working in the same subject, learn new ideas and can return to their own country charged with a mission to change the image of science and technology in their own country.
Despite the attention and adulation from many parts of the world, he remained deeply committed to his own country, Pakistan, even after experiencing multiple betrayals and rejections from his countrymen. He belonged to the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam which was declared a heretical sect and its followers non-Muslims, in 1974 by the Pakistani parliament. (Non-Muslims are second-class citizens in Pakistan, by law.) He resigned as the Chief Scientific Adviser to the President in protest and left Pakistan for good. But he never abandoned Pakistan in his heart and arrived in traditional ethnic garb to the Nobel ceremony in 1979 when he shared the Physics prize with Steven Weinberg and Sheldon Glashow. Much later, when Professor Salam wanted to run for the position of Director General of UNESCO, the Pakistan government refused to endorse his candidacy, which is a pre-requisite, despite support from several developing countries. Other countries, including Italy offered him a citizenship to run for the post but he refused – he never gave up his Pakistani citizenship. He also continued to support with money and resources scientific development and education in Pakistan, including donating his entire share of the Nobel prize money. But he has constantly been vilified and disparaged in Pakistan to the point of being accused of being an Indian spy and his contribution belittled and forgotten.
But his greatest legacy by far was his steadfast belief in the universal nature of Science. In a foreword to Professor Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy’s book Islam and Science: Religious Orthodoxy and Battle for Rationality, he wrote:
“There is only one universal science, its problems and modalities are international and there is no such thing as Islamic science just as there is no Hindu science, no Jewish science, no Confucian science, nor Christian science.”
The ever-infuriating Westboro Baptist Church, which made its reputation picketing the funerals of soldiers while holding signs saying “god hates fags” and “thank god for dead soldiers,” says it is heading to Norway to lend its presence to the funerals of those killed in the July 22 massacre.
“Personally I have no talent for believing in life after death,” Mr. Hendrikse says. “No, for me our life, our task, is before death.” Nor does Klaas Hendrikse believe that God exists at all as a supernatural thing. “When it happens, it happens down to earth, between you and me, between people, thats where it can happen. God is not a being at all… its a word for experience, or human experience.” Mr Hendrikse describes the Bible’s account of Jesus’s life as a mythological story about a man who may never have existed, even if it is a valuable source of wisdom about how to lead a good life.
Mr. Klaas Hendrikse is neither a skeptical atheist nor a pagan non-believer – he is a reverend at the Exodus Church in Gorinchem, central Holland, which is part of the mainstream Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PKN).
Just 10 days after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Rais Bhuiyan was working at a gas station in Dallas when he was shot in the face by a man named Mark Stroman. Stroman was on a shooting spree, targeting people who appeared to be Muslim or of Middle Eastern descent. Stroman is due to be executed July 20; Bhuiyan, the only survivor of the attacks, is fighting to save his life.
Bill Maher talks about how Christian the Christians of the world really are with reference to the reports of celebrations on Osama’s death. Love the way he rips them apart! Some gems:
Martin Luther King gets to call himself a Christian because he actually practiced loving his enemies. And Gandhi was so f**king Christian, he was Hindu!
He (Jesus) has lines like, “Do not repay evil with evil,” and “Do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you.” Really! It’s in that book you hold up when you scream at gay people!
…non-violence was kind of Jesus’ trademark. Kind of his big thing. To not follow that part of it is like joining Greenpeace and hating whales.
But you see, I can say that because I’m a non-Christian. Just like most Christians.
I’m just saying logically, if you ignore every single thing Jesus commanded you to do, you’re not a Christian. You’re just auditing. You’re not Christ’s followers. You’re just fans. And if you believe the earth was given to you to kick ass on while gloating, you’re not really a Christian; you’re a Texan!
In 1959 Bertrand Russell was interviewed by John Freeman for his programme Face to Face on BBC. Lord Russell was almost 87 years old then but still in great shape. As the presenter remarks,
“But far from being a frail old gentleman, he appeared before the camera as spry, mischievous and articulate as the public had ever known him throughout a long career as a campaigner for various causes at odds with the establishment.”
The interview is in 3 parts on YouTube but I have combined them together in a playlist for easy viewing. It is a very entertaining interview and Lord Russell is a treat to watch and listen to. But the part that stays with you is right at the end – his last words. The interviewer asks him for some parting words addressed to a future generation and this is what he says,
“I should like to say two things, one intellectual and one moral. The intellectual thing I should want to say to them is this: When you are studying any matter, or considering any philosophy, ask yourself only “What are the facts? And what is the truth that the facts bear out?” Never let yourself be diverted either by what you wish to believe or by what you think could have beneficent social effects if it were believed. But look only and solely at what are the facts. That is the intellectual thing that I should wish to say.
The moral thing I should wish to say to them is very simple. I should say: Love is wise, hatred is foolish. In this world which is getting more and more closely inter-connected we have to learn to tolerate each other, we have to learn to put up with the fact that some people say things that we don’t like. We can only live together in that way and if we are to live together and not die together we must learn a kind of charity and a kind of tolerance which is absolutely vital to the continuation of human life on this planet.”
Prophetic words these! Unfortunately we have still not learnt this simple lesson.
Thanks to some social sharing, discovered this amazing virtual look at the Sistine Chapel. And reading about it on Wikipedia, discovered some interesting as well as funny facts about the paintings. Thought I should share…
The giant frescoes were painted by some of the greatest Renaissance artists including Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini, and Sandro Botticelli.
Michaelangelo resented the commission and in the painting, The Last Judgement he did a self portrait depicting himself as St. Bartholomew after he had been skinned alive. This is said to be reflective of his feelings of contempt!
The painting, The Last Judgment was accused of immorality and intolerable obscenity by Cardinal Carafa, having depicted naked figures, with genitals in evidence, inside the most important church of Christianity. The Pope’s own Master of Ceremonies, Biagio da Cesena, also called it disgraceful and said that it was no work for a papal chapel but rather “for the public baths and taverns”. Michelangelo, upon hearing this, worked Cesena’s face into the scene as Minos, judge of the underworld with Donkey ears! The genitalia in the fresco were covered 24 years later by the artist Daniele da Volterra, whom history remembers by the derogatory nickname “Il Braghettone” (“the breeches-painter”).
When the fresco was restored in 1993, half of the censorship by Volterra was removed. It was also discovered that the fresco of Biagio de Cesena as Minos with donkey ears was being bitten in the genitalia by a coiled snake!
As might be evident from my ramblings, I do not subscribe to any faith other than the faith in the human spirit of free inquiry and skepticism. But I understand the importance of this one day of the year in the lives of a large number of my fellow human beings, amongst whose ranks my wife and her family count themselves. But then there are my other fellow human beings who, by virtue of being members of a different cult, have completely desensitized themselves to the needs of others which are not that much different from their own. I am not taking sides here and I do not believe nor am I suggesting that one is in any way better than the other, but I believe in the rights of human beings to delude themselves in any manner they please as long as that delusion does not harm or hinder another who doesn’t subscribe to the same delusion as them. In other words, I am drawn once more to these immortal words of Voltaire,
“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to death your right to say it.”
I guess Indonesia might as well make it all official now – throw away the Pancasila, throw away Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, ban all religions except Islam, proclaim Shariah and finalize the degeneration of a great and diverse nation to an Islamic state.
Where are all the “moderate Muslims” when you need them?
Abdus Salam was a physicist and Pakistan’s one and only Nobel Laureate. He was also the first Muslim Nobel Laureate in the sciences, although Pakistan doesn’t recognise him as a Muslim! Because he belongs to the Ahmadiyya sect of Muslims who do not believe that Muhammad was the last prophet, for which 
