He stands there.
As the waves rise , roar and die.
The solitary nerve in his
heart comes alive;
He breathes fresh again ,
accomplishes fulfilment,
With contentment, Aroused from the acknowledgement.
In agony and ecstasy ,
It was by his side ;
Conforming to his smiles and
tears
Joys and fears.
Ever observing the expansion
and contraction of his,
wrinkle-less and wrinkled face.
Weaved endlessly – Man and the
Sea.
The sea valued him , cut him
to size , cursed him , loved him too. Never was indifferent. It saw his father
and his children. The introvert land loving father and his emancipated
,extrovert children . Children of joy and fun – modern mariners of intellect
and enterprise . With the zeal like Jesuits they broached to seek beyond the
horizon . It became theatre for flexing of muscles for Philips, Nelsons and
Napoleons. The pedagogues brought it to the classrooms and demagogues
flourished on in it more. On its waves rode religion and politics , Christ and
faith , cotton, silver , Gold and slaves.
Mankind dreaded this ever restless blue mass of liquid called the sea, which became a stage for projection
of power and glory. However, each morning and evening people of various age ,
colour, views and station, come close to
it to add a look to many a look, for new features to appear . The old and
senior cherish it as a record of their
no longer potency , and the young would seek a new identification . It is a
shrine for lovers and for lovers no more. For one explores its serenity and
calmness far from the organic pollution , settled on a well behaved stoic rock
with sea as an interpreter communicating in silence. For those in forlorn state
it provides a shoulder to lean on to in
its anger, sombreness, rumbling and grumbling which meets their hearts. The
breaking and tossing of shingles and pebbles reflecting their inner chaos .
They take solace in understanding that there is one who understands them. The
connoisseurs of literature , Art and aesthetics delight themselves by tapping
the dusk and the dawn . Concentrating on pink against the horizon , musing in
its making and breaking of form.
It demonstrated all shades of mood which the
humanity possesses . The intensity of feelings which the society has imbibed
through the ages. The fear of the new moon night . The child like joy , innocence , freshness and purity. The
virgin quality of its glass like stillness. The
scream of a hysterical woman in it cyclonic waves. The naughty youth
like presence of the white horses. Its chameleonic and coquettish behaviour; every thing.
The sea contains immense
wealth and is recorded in Indian ancient
Puranic stories . ‘Samudra Manthan’ was executed by the ‘Devs
and Asurs’ to explore the
untapped reserve of the ocean. It was a collective effort of churning the Sea!
It implies that the entire Nation has to work together to seek wealth. The
churning produced numerous precious objects and
divine beings - such as ‘Kaustubha-precious jewel’, ‘Airawat
elephant’, ‘Ucchoshrava horse’ , ‘ Dhanwantri the Vaidya’ , ‘ Kamdhenu Cow’ ,
‘Varuni- Goddess of wine ’, ‘Lakshmi -Godess
of wealth’, ‘ Halahal - poison’ , ‘ Apsaras- Rambha and Menaka’ . ‘ Kalpavriksha’
-Divine tree’, ‘ Panchjanya- Divine Conch’
etc and finally ‘Amrit’
was discovered which created a feud between ‘Devs and Asurs’
which persists till date ! The contesting claims and conflicts and quest for
fair distribution of wealth among and within Nations . There are numerous
symbols and motifs embedded in this story related in ‘Vishnu Purana’ . The
residence of Lord Vishnu is in ‘Kshire Sagar – Ocean of Milk’ with his wife Goddess Lakshmi and is lying on the ‘Shesh Nag- the
serpant’. And, indeed the wealth
of the Nations and the World is located in coastal cities by the sea be it
Mumbai in India or Shanghai in China or New York in US. It is believed that
once our earth was embedded in sea and has emerged from there. Lord Shiva has
kept the poison churned out from the sea , safe in his neck . The ‘Nuclear
Button’ is safe and secure with him and he controls it- ‘God of
Destruction’! We ascertain
that Divine beings , Humans, Animals,
Plants and Material wealth was the result
of churning representing the entire
creation!
Though Space is the new
frontier of exploration the Sea remains primary arena of control by powerful
Nations. India protects its interests in The Indian Ocean , Arabian Sea and Bay
of Bengal and the entire coast line which skirts the Seas. China is asserting its presence in
Indian Ocean waters by strengthening its Nuclear submarines numbers . The United States has no intention to dilute
its presence world over through seas and various Fleets.
The Sea has been there , it will be there. Man has
been here, he will be here . Both unavoidable , omnipresent . With the world
hidden in its womb , Sea remains infallible , insuperable, incorrigible . It
allows no one to tame it . It beckons
men of understanding , patience , tolerance , perseverance , fortitude and
wisdom . Remains the symbol of man’s infinite search for Truth , of eternal
flux of time that will never stop , of the final equilibrium that will never be
achieved . And , the endeavour which will never cease.
