madhiraalay jaane ko ghar se chalta hai peenewaala
'kis path se jaaoon?' asmanjas mein hai vah bholabhaala
alag alag path batlaate sabpar main yeh batlaata hoon
'raah pakad tu ek chala chal pa jaayega madhushaala
This is the most quoted, most recognized verse of the Madhushala. Most of those who are not fully familiar with the Madhushala even think that it is the opening verse. In a most beautiful selection of verses for an album which was sung by the great singer Manna De, this is indeed the first verse, sung-recited by the poet Bachchan himself.
The quest for happiness is eternal, and every man and woman seeks it, all his or her life. We all want to be protected, safe, and free from the vicissitudes of life. That state of total protection from the vagaries of life - that is the madiraalay that we all seek.
But there is a contradiction that very quest. We want to be happy, and protected from unhappiness, but life is messy, unfair and unpredictable. It is surprising that most people's vision of happiness is actually a vision of withdrawal! We want to live life but we do not want to be subject to its uncertainties. So yes, this man, who is asmanjas, confused, sets out to seek happiness, and therein lies the problem. Happiness, as Bachchan will demonstrate in ample measure is always within, and forever in the now.
So what is the meaning of 'raah pakad tu ek chala chal, pa jaayega madhushala'? Doesn't it mean, as it is commonly understood, that all roads lead to happiness / fulfillment-Rome? Doesn't it mean that every religion leads to the same Godhead?
That is the conventional understanding of this verse, but I don't think that is what Bachchan meant. Bachchan was too knowledgeable a person to be so common in the usage of his words. Later in the poem, Bachchan explicitly rejects every form of organized religion; he rejects ALL paths to salvation. Each and every one of them.
The great philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, in his speech, said something that could be treated as the explanation of this all-important verse, and I quote:
"I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view, and I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organised; nor should any organisation be formed to lead or coerce people along any particular path. If you first understand that, then you will see how impossible it is to organise a belief. A belief is purely an individual matter, and you cannot and must not organise it. If you do, it becomes dead, crystallised; it becomes a creed, a sect, a religion, to be imposed on others".
It is the organization of belief that leads to alag alag path batlaate sab. Every organization that purports to show the way to salvation is a sham. The only purpose of any organization, no matter how noble the motive to form it, degenerates into a mechanism for its own perpetuation.
Bachchan was bold, iconoclastic, and uncompromising when he wrote that verse. He said three things:
1. All of us set out to seek our spiritual taverns where we can find eternal happiness.
2. Invariably, we will be confused about how to go about finding that elusive happiness.
3. As long as we desire salvation, there will be gurus and masters who will peddle their own "path", none of which have hope in hell of getting you there.
Given these difficulties, Bachchan points out that the only "path" to that beautiful tavern is the desire to find out. The desire for the eternal truth is the path: the motive is the object. That is how the verse must be understood, and the proof of this interpretation is in Verse 9, which we shall come to in due course.
'kis path se jaaoon?' asmanjas mein hai vah bholabhaala
alag alag path batlaate sabpar main yeh batlaata hoon
'raah pakad tu ek chala chal pa jaayega madhushaala
This is the most quoted, most recognized verse of the Madhushala. Most of those who are not fully familiar with the Madhushala even think that it is the opening verse. In a most beautiful selection of verses for an album which was sung by the great singer Manna De, this is indeed the first verse, sung-recited by the poet Bachchan himself.
The quest for happiness is eternal, and every man and woman seeks it, all his or her life. We all want to be protected, safe, and free from the vicissitudes of life. That state of total protection from the vagaries of life - that is the madiraalay that we all seek.
But there is a contradiction that very quest. We want to be happy, and protected from unhappiness, but life is messy, unfair and unpredictable. It is surprising that most people's vision of happiness is actually a vision of withdrawal! We want to live life but we do not want to be subject to its uncertainties. So yes, this man, who is asmanjas, confused, sets out to seek happiness, and therein lies the problem. Happiness, as Bachchan will demonstrate in ample measure is always within, and forever in the now.
So what is the meaning of 'raah pakad tu ek chala chal, pa jaayega madhushala'? Doesn't it mean, as it is commonly understood, that all roads lead to happiness / fulfillment-Rome? Doesn't it mean that every religion leads to the same Godhead?
That is the conventional understanding of this verse, but I don't think that is what Bachchan meant. Bachchan was too knowledgeable a person to be so common in the usage of his words. Later in the poem, Bachchan explicitly rejects every form of organized religion; he rejects ALL paths to salvation. Each and every one of them.
The great philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, in his speech, said something that could be treated as the explanation of this all-important verse, and I quote:
"I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view, and I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organised; nor should any organisation be formed to lead or coerce people along any particular path. If you first understand that, then you will see how impossible it is to organise a belief. A belief is purely an individual matter, and you cannot and must not organise it. If you do, it becomes dead, crystallised; it becomes a creed, a sect, a religion, to be imposed on others".
It is the organization of belief that leads to alag alag path batlaate sab. Every organization that purports to show the way to salvation is a sham. The only purpose of any organization, no matter how noble the motive to form it, degenerates into a mechanism for its own perpetuation.
Bachchan was bold, iconoclastic, and uncompromising when he wrote that verse. He said three things:
1. All of us set out to seek our spiritual taverns where we can find eternal happiness.
2. Invariably, we will be confused about how to go about finding that elusive happiness.
3. As long as we desire salvation, there will be gurus and masters who will peddle their own "path", none of which have hope in hell of getting you there.
Given these difficulties, Bachchan points out that the only "path" to that beautiful tavern is the desire to find out. The desire for the eternal truth is the path: the motive is the object. That is how the verse must be understood, and the proof of this interpretation is in Verse 9, which we shall come to in due course.
1 comment:
Lovely,lovely,Mohan."The only purpose of any organization, no matter how noble the motive to form it, degenerates into a mechanism for its own perpetuation." Very wonderfully put.Bahut mazaa aaya.
M V Devraj
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