The Power of Dualism

The subject or idea of dualism was only presented to me fairly recently. Say in the past couple of years. I have a strong suspicion that it's because of society today that it did not exist for me to consider the good in every bad, the love in every hate, or more simply, the non-existence in the existing.

It is easier to understand that one fails to exist without the other, but applying that to all emotions and experiences is the hard part. Although when done, it churns out the beautiful magic of empathy.

Yesterday, Michael and I were invited to go to this Hindu temple down the road to a "mini" Thaipusam festival, which didn't turn out to be so "mini". For those of you who don't know, Thaipusam is a Hindu festival that celebrates the greatness of Lord Murugan, a son of Shiva. By showing their appreciation for him, the devotees pull large beautifully decorated Kavadis (chariots) to and from temples using metal hooks and rods pierced through their skin. What's so amazing about this is that no pain is felt, as all devotees are inducted in a trance where it is believed that they are wholly under the protection of the deity who will not allow any blood shed or sufferance.

Guess what? This was actually the inspiration for me to write this post :)
(Excuse the crap quality photos)

Being a Malaysian, we celebrate all cultural and religious festivals native to our homeland, so I've been to Batu Caves many times to celebrate Thaipusam with my Hindu friends. From what I know, Thaipusam is a happy and colourful festival that celebrates faith, perseverance and penance.

Not so "mini"

A devotee must be completely immersed in a trance, induced by chanting, loud drumming and incense, before he or she is allowed to carry a Kavadi. Some may be totally freaked out by this and some may even say that bad spirits have possessed them. After hearing all this, I realised that this is where the power of dualism comes into play. It is all a matter of perspective, surface analysis and most of all, us trying to categorise things we don't understand.

Stole this image from Google #mycitation

Whether it be a deity or a bad spirit, these are two separate entities that require the same amount of energy from us, just like love and hate, making them both the same thing.

Before you jump at me, the statement below is just a thought...

So, if I apply the same concept to God and the Devil, the two extremes of all religions, I can conclude that they are the same thing. It is our perception that makes one different from the other, giving it our very own opinionated levels of good or bad, based on our previous experiences and memories.

You are as bad as your enemy ;)
World peace.

My View in 360°

Let's not dwell on and dramatise the metaphorical meaning of the title, because you're not getting it!!! hahahah!

When Christopher Colombus discovered the Earth was a spherical mass (based on mainstream history, not going to argue about that now), I don't think many people, besides the obvious super gung-ho existentialists and pantheists, think about this enough times to fully absorb the meaning of 360. Honestly, I haven't even tried. After all, what each of us see through our eyes is a matter of perspective, isn't it?

Sri Lanka has given me a taste on what it's like to experience the 360 limit of our perspective. Okay, maybe not "limit", it makes it sound like I'm putting a cap on the human ability, even though it's true. Let's try... magnitude. Yes, the 360 magnitude of our perspective.

So apparently, you get blue whales in Sri Lanka. DID YOU KNOW THAT???? Good. Nor did we. On our third day here, we were invited to go whale watching by our neighbours, the nature conservationists - Daya and Chamila. Still not convinced we were going to see any whales, off we went on this whale escapade at 6 in the bloody morning.

Sunrise in Trincomalee

We got in a boat and as it started scooting towards the horizon, the land we left behind got smaller and smaller, and eventually it disappeared. Looking around, you only got the same frame as the last - blue water, blue water and more blue water. It was then that I fully absorbed the magnificence around me, where I stood amongst all the other things on this planet, and most of all I was given the chance to admire the beautiful curvature of the Earth in its full natural colour that we sometimes neglect to see.

Before I could go on daydreaming further about what was spherical and what was not, this little pup popped up to the surface. (Only that it wasn't really a pup, it was a full-fledged water-spouting, tail-flapping, krill-eating blue whale.)

Trincomalee, where we're based right now, has been a very nice surprise so far, especially for its heart-warming people with heart-warming smiles, and of course, the amazing food. Besides the lack of jellybeans, this wonderful little place will always mean something special to me because this was where Michael and I began a new chapter in our lives.