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| Mahatma Gandhi |
Julius Caesar, Mbade Nzinga, Napolean I of France, Elizabeth I, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D Roosevelt and Mahatma Gandhi. Am I being naive if I ask who these people are? Of course, these are some of the most notable names from ancient to modern history. Their lives were subjected to intense scrutiny and their actions were (and are) considered as exemplary. Most of them unified their countrymen and are considered as great leaders, especially in times of crisis.
Atilla the Hun, Genghis Khan, Mahmud Ghaznavi, Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Reginald Dyer, Slobodan Milošević and Pol Pot. Some of these names are instantly familiar to most of us. These names are ingrained in the history of mankind, perhaps etched deeper than the names aforementioned. Their lives were scrutinized to greatest possible degree, sometimes in the court of law. Their actions left thousand of lives incapacitated and brought world to the brink of anarchy.
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| Sergio Vieira de Mello |
Sergio Viera de Mello, Satyendra Dubey, Seth Shostak, Ric O'Berry, Mike Horn and Kumi Naidoo. These are some of the names who are public figures but unknown to most of the masses. Their actions against injustice, corruption or simply their passion for exploration have added a new flavour to the food for thought for the common man. Their sacrifices have urged humanity to ask questions and have helped hundreds to believe in true grit and morality; qualities that seem to disappear as mankind leaps.
Everyone aforementioned is a public figure, whether for the right reasons or for reasons of notoriety. Their actions were keenly followed, lives are still scrutinized even after they have shed their mortal coils, some of their words have become golden quotes and their images still keep them alive on thousands of pages around the world. Even law treats a public figure differently than any other mortal living on the Earth. A public figure cannot collect libel damages without proving that "actual malice" was involved in the publishing of inaccurate and defamatory material.
But who is the public figure whose life and actions are scrutinized by each and every living being on Earth (and perhaps on other planets where intelligent life exists)? I'll give you a hint, this public figure was on TIME magazine's cover page in 1966; although in an abstract form! Still wondering? Okay, here is another hint; a comic take on the scrutiny this public figure faces was made into a Hollywood movie with John Denver in a leading role, year 1977. If the Googling has been unsuccessful so far, here is the final hint, an Indian television series on this public figure ran for 156 episodes in the year 1999 on DD1.
So without any further ado, let me introduce you to God. The creator, destroyer, caretaker, listener, evaluator, congenator and all other relations we attribute to Him when we need a divine help. He transcends all boundaries that either exists on Earth and beyond the comprehension of a human mind. A lot of Indian students would remember singing a prayer in their childhood, which goes like this 'तुम्ही हो माता, पिता तुम्ही हो, तुम्ही हो बंधु सखा तुम्ही हो'. This is a Hindi song based on a shloka. (Read more: http://www.tilakpyle.com/sanskrit_prayers.htm#twameva) The prayer essentially implies that God is our everything. Through words of saints, books, conversations with people from diverse faith & religion and media, the message is fundamentally the same. Happiness and sorrow of human beings have been attributed to His actions. Although the world agrees He is kind but some of the actions leave a reason to doubt otherwise.
Some of the actions in history have been scrutinized for centuries, would continued to be for many more centuries. Even the very existence of this public figure is under doubt. Perhaps more people believe that aliens exist than the number believing in His existence! Yet, the phrase 'Oh, God!' continues to pop out of mouths around the world. If it was possible to interview Him, and tell the world how it feels to be God, the sentiment wouldn't be too different from what George Burns said while portraying the 'character' of God. Of course God has to be in a funny mood, he said (and I quote):
'Why is it so hard for you to believe? Is my physical existence any more improbable than your own? What about all that hoo-ha with the devil awhile ago from that movie? Nobody had any problem believing that the devil took over and existed in a little girl. All she had to do was wet the rug, throw up some pea soup and everybody believed. The devil you could believe, but not God? I work in my own way. I don't, I don't get inside little children; they got enough to do just being themselves. Also I'm not about to go around to every person in the world and say, 'Look it's me, I wanna talk to you.' So I picked one man. One very good man. I told him God lives. I live. He had trouble believing too, in the beginning. I understood. I'm not sure how this whole miracle business started, the idea that anything connected with me has to be a miracle. Personally I'm sorry that it did.' (Unquote).
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| 'Eye of God' Nebula |
However God is the 'true' public figure, he is not a celebrity, a word that has been wrongly associated with the public figure. He is a figure who belongs to the masses and works for each any every being present anywhere in this incomprehensible universe. Maybe we cannot see God but saints are the embodiment of divinity on this world. Of course the search for a true saint is hard but we can always rely on the ever-present likelihood of kindness in form of numerous graces we receive throughout our life; whether divine or not-so-divine most of the times. In the historic as well as modern worlds saints have been targets of slander and hatred. There are numerous examples in history where saints had to sacrifice their lives due to the misinformed and misaligned scrutiny by others. It is tough to be a saint in this world, yet they devote their life to spiritualism, love and peace.
Despite of all the applesauce floating around this public figure a few in the mankind work arduously to preserve the faith. With this faith comes the motivation and confidence to do the 'right' thing. The 'right' thing a term so loosely defined yet so firm when put into action. So next time do spare some time for the public figure and put yourself in divine (and sometimes just what is simply the 'right') shoes before going about the normal way. Perhaps some of you would ask 'Who is a saint?'; I leave this entirely to your sound judgment. For I have faith if you think hard enough with a peaceful mind a saint could be just around the corner.
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