Saturday, August 02, 2008

Its the first sunday of August!

Science definitely has come a long way, but still, when I look at it another way its just, what, a, at max 5000 yrs (five thousand years) of the evolution of Science. Now if I say it in the way Shilu* explained "...compared to a million years of evolution..."

As to feelings, can science explain it? And a hurl of yes is definitely to come toward me. Thats very true. Sensory nerves! Its funtions, the chemistry behind it, is today no more a mystery and many more. But again a big 'no' to those who have said a 'yes' and also to all. Consider the feeling we get when we find someone in sorrow, or when we find someone happy!

Yes feelings happen to be an integral part of the human social system. Let me tell you a incident. It was 7 pm, 1st January 2000, a remarkable day indeed, and guess where I was? A multigym in Krishnanagar, Delhi. Definitely I was there willingly, and surely I had no motive to work-out, and I was there with my elder cousin-brother, who definitely was working out and that too 'willingly.'

At this point I must point out that I was a very shy boy (I am too!), and found no interest in talking to the other loitering around me. I was sitting on the rubber walk of a treadmill, green in colour and spiky in texture. When suddenly an oversized boy leaned towards me and thrust his hand forward to me saying, "Hi! I'm Ankur. Friends?" Seriously I was perplexed. But some strange feeling of social binding as to what the people around me would say forced me to put forward a meeky hand which shook under his impact. This boy was in the same standard I was in. We smiled at each other and that did it all.

The changes in nature inter-personal or intra-personal, is it a result of the different mutation of the endless proteins residing in the DNA of people. Whatever be the reason, 'Friendship' is something the nothing new to this world.

1935 is the year when the US National Congress declared the first sunday of the month of August to be celebrated nationwide as "Friendship Day." Following which worldwide many nations took up this celebration. In 1997, Winnie, the Pooh was named the world's ambassador of Friendship by the UN. Throughout the different stages of history different cultures have expressed in medium of colour, music, art etc. It was when commertialization as of today's was not done. Today a friendship day is a day when a teenager gets a free licence to propose a girl, to give her a gift item, "friendship" follows if the girl accepts it. The strangest part of this act is the girl accepts it.

Can't keep myself from laughing. The world has changed everything into a sarcasm of itself, left with very few to notice. Rightly so when I say in the words of C. S. Lewis, "Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value," but actually the world has forgotten what he also said, "rather is one of those things that give value to survival."

Only after reading what he said does people realize, smile, send a SMS or two with this quote, trying to express something he/she rarely resembles, thereby adding to commercial value more than 'true' value.

Can science try to explain feelings? The human evolution has been a million year long, add to it another 5000 years of its evolution along with Science. Its evolving more! We are a part of the whole process.

Wishing all a warm Friendship's Day

* NOTE: SHILU happens to be a classmate of mine, who aims at the Nobel prize.