Saturday 21 November 2009

Buggered word Gita?

Dhrtrashtra said-
I, born blind, yet now in darkness more profound
Your speech, beseech, that my Light may be Sound
Say- Were our battle eager Barons not abashed when they found
Their bellicose display profaned Kuru’s holy ground?
Sanjay replied-
Nay, blind to all but their, mirrored, martial array
Only defeat, not desecration, their thoughts could dismay
Though who die on the field of Kuru’s sacred fane
By your ancestor’s boon, sure, Heaven attain
Who go there to slay- like gamblers gloating at a game they have fixed
In the wine of their winnings but Honour’s ashes are mixed-
Yet, I admit, your son, for one, to his Guru sped his way
But, it was to shore up his own support, not for guidance to pray
Saying, “There stand the students you taught to draw the bow
“Now jesting & contesting whose arrow shall lay you low...

"There stand the traitors- captained by the son of your false friend
"Lives you might have ended, were Loyalty your true end...

“But now hear, best of 'Brahmins', of the berzerkers in my ranks
“Innumerable Heroes, intent, with their lives, to buy my thanks!”

But I spare you his roll call of clients obligated and allies opportune
Bombast not for Bards, but the Eunuch’s euphonious tune...

To proceed-

Seeing the great Guru stand silent, or, simply, your son’s spirits to raise
Blew the conflict commencing conch, Bhishma, beyond praise.
Your grand-sire’s clarion being echoed by others on his side
Lord Krishna, and your nephews, in like terms replied.
& all Heaven and Earth trembled at that soul ravening roar
Rending the hearts of its hearers who had roared just before
Then spoke Arjun to Lord Krishna, who, as his charioteer to boast,
Had bartered away the strength of a battle hardened host
“Twixt the assembled armies, Thou Changeless, direct now my car
"To see how mercenary are those mustered for this unjust war”

Not choosing to whet Arjun’s valour upon visages malicious or mean
To Guru Drona & Grandsire Bhishma, straight, Kishan drove his team
 For both in Virtue abound- bound by no higher Law than their vow
& Timocratic thymos however courteous their bow
Serving Kings, forfeiting Kingdoms, in but fealty to their word
Not Justice, nor yet that Kingdom never of this world
And who, of your son’s bounty, having no cause for complaint
Cleave to his cause, though knowing him no saint.
It was to these two great warriors- impossible for Arjun to best
That Kishan drove your nephew- his mettle to test.
Yet, not his courage then quavered, nor confidence wavered but- strange to say
Compassion there seized him, such Sorrow besieged him- his valour ebbed away

He said-
“I tremble and stare, my hair stands on end,
Seeing elder, preceptor, kinfolk and friend
Eager for battle
thundering cattle
lowing their bliss
 at butchery’s abyss
Whom, if nothing else can warn,
Let my bloody body impede
 their idiot stampede
For life is nothing once loved ones are gone
These are my kinfolk- Keshava!
Though Greed misled them
This doom I dread them
Their families will fail
Their widows wail
& daughters harlots turn
Hell fire their ancestors burn!
My ancestors- Keshava!"
Saying which, the puissant Prince cast aside his bow and unable to stand
Was crushed down in his chariot seat by sorrow’s feeble hand.

Lord Krishna had sought but Arjuna’s martial ardour to feed
Upon the sight of warriors worthy of his arrow’s worshipful speed
Whom ’twere a puzzle to best
 An exacting test
Not a conclusion foregone
That they he’d mourn
For by boon Celestial
and their own butchering skills bestial
Drona and Bhishma could not be killed
 Save they themselves so willed
Which fact, if mentioned, might his cause retard
Thus Kishan, hoist with his own petard
Said only - ‘whine not like a little pussy, you big girl’s blouse! ’
“Well at least my pussy is little- yours’s bigger than a house!”
A retort Arjuna didn’t make- restoring amity
But rather continued to whine- a true calamity
For such indeed, is the tradition of your House
The heir rightful to yield- coz he’s a big girl’s blouse
Devapi & Bhishma, but worse, Vyasa, Shuka, to God
Chitrangada alone battling- defeated poor sod
By that jealous demi-Divinity disputing his name
Dying, as Men must, the Heavens to defame
But, not Arjun, no, for that chaksushi vidya he’d been given
A sort of world withering second sight - or arrow that is driven
Backwards into eyes by what might otherwise blind them
Unloosing Light’s lasso from heads severed to thus bind them
As Iravan’s head that sees all I see
Shedding, perhaps, Tears where I go pee-pee...
But, to get back to what Arjuna said
‘I’d rather be dead
Than on such offal fed
As on which fatten, but, vulture & culture
 Whoredom and kingdom
Title that is but theft’s requital
 or Desire- that liar
 or Pride- that pre & Pan fucked bride
 or, once Shame’s a goner,
Honour!”
Actually, he didn’t say that. I mean, it’s what he should have said
’stead of whining like a pussy about how his heart bled
For his cousins and Uncles and other such shite
For agenbite of inwit did that nitwit much bite

How battle Compassion? Against Pity what avails?
Its bitter taunt, the bravest daunt, yet, here, Love fails
What advice can one give to one better advised?
What redaction to a text, remorse has revised?

Lord Krishna was silent- what, after all, could he say?
Himself the soul of Arjun’s compassionate dismay
Till Arjun, waxing eloquent in unaccustomed speech
Outran Ruth, to Truth, in Rhetoric, over-reach
Saying “My Compassion is weak- not my Nature knows this weakness
& Duty’s path ever doubtful- such my Warrior Mind’s obliqueness
Yet, tho’ of your Treasury, the merest trifle
What in me is your disciple
Owns wholly and longs to own
You Lord and you alone
As the Unifier of my Empire entire
& Unequivocal voice my I might suspire
My Freedom wretched save as thy dole
Sole Refuge, mine, Persecute my soul!
Redeem my victory, bleak, over Men and God
For not I shall fight for such bitter reward!”

Well, he didn’t actually say that- but you get the gist
Compassion such a cunt it oft appears to have jizz’t
A truth analytic, not Synthetic, as Kant Emanuelle assumed
Like ‘Bugger not a Brummie after a Balti he’s consumed’
For Kurukshetra is the Polish Space for Jorgensen’s dilemma
Such that Brouwer Choice Sequences evolve Zorn’s lemma
& Everybody is everybody by Banach Tarski
& Huggy Bear the Brahma of Hutch & Starsky
To be or not to be that is the riddle
& Occluded we - the excluded middle
But here I will stop coz, blind buddy, you’re busted!
You say you want to see but turn away disgusted
War aint a cutesy rom com video you can rent
To watch with your girl or bum chums wot are bent
War isn’t a joke- mark me well
Coz of all the philosophy that gets spoke- War is Hell!

Dhritirashtra- Sanjay, Suta, your speech is strange
                        & like Light, doubtful, & by Lust deranged
Sanjaya-   Suta? You mistake me, I very much fear
                            For that guy sleeping there- your charioteer
                                                                   I’m not a Suta but Sanjay Sharma!
Dhritirashtra- Not the Bard’s, you follow the Brahmin’s dharma?
Sanjaya- Neither, Sir, or both, for I’m a born I.T professional
Dhritarashtra-  Your Gita then the Knowledge Empire’s Recessional?
Sanaya- Nope, I’m just that Sharma that next to Iyer had my seat
               In Mr. Yadav’s Hindi class, who Anglophones did much beat
                                   Till, with him, they took private tuition
                            Or for imported Whiskey by Vedic intuition
                                divined his desire, or appeased his ire
                        Like Rajiv- Serene- now a game theorist in Austin
                       Who, actually learn’t Hindi, a Tea Party at Boston
                        For, Verb sap, says Vivek, a word to the Wise
                      All Independence commences in Indian disguise

 Dhritirashtra-  I don’t believe you, my piss you surely take
                            Blind tho’ I be, buddy, BIG fucking mistake!

Sanjaya- All right! I’m that aforementioned Iyer Vivek
           Whom to Gita’s glory, a Yadav slap, did awake
          In St. Columba’s School, New Delhi, circa ‘75
         Dead now to Sophia, but, in Cyber-Space alive
         Met up with you here by some glitch tachyonic
        My ISP so crap and my router something chronic
        Which is actually quite good news for you
        Seeing as I can do
        More than your Suta- for my vision is diachronic
        Just the thing, blind King, & for your ears a tonic

Dhritarashtra-  Cunt! curtail your queef!
Vivek-  Can’t. But I’ll be brief.





5 comments:

wolverine said...

'For Kurukshetra is the Polish Space for Jorgensen’s dilemma
Such that Brouwer Choice Sequences evolve Zorn’s lemma'

what are you saying?
Jorgensen's dilemma refers to the puzzle that ethics seeks to deduce truth values from normative (value judgement) statements. Deontic logic is of great practical significance since it underlies legal, ethical, organisational and inter-personal reasoning and discourse.
A Polish space- in the ordinary mathematical sense- is one where a mapping will preserve Borel structure- so it seems you are saying that the events at Kurukshetra are a model for deontic logic. Is this right?
The other thing that came to mind was the 'Polish corridor' which was Hitler's excuse for his invasion- but I don't see how that relates to the Mahabharata.

Now for the second line. You say that the events of the Bharata war are a model for a deontic logic SUCH THAT... what exactly?
I'm sorry, I don't understand how 'Brouwer Choice functions can evolve Zorn's lemma'. There is no connection that I can see between the 2.
I won't comment on the rest of this- I make no claims to being a critic of poetry- but good luck to you.
I suppose you just brought in Zorn's lemma to rhyme with dilemma.
In a sense, I suppose, the axiom of choice would have a bearing on the possibility of a model for a deontic logic but this is far from self-evident.
Brouwer choice sequences- well, I'm not aware of what precisely is being done using them at this time but once again, if you are claiming there is a connection then I think you need to spell out your reasons.
Of course, if it is all just 'rhyme without reason' then the joke is on me for having taken it seriously.
However, since you asked for my comments- here there are.

windwheel said...

I'm suggesting that mathematical concepts that evolve from some notion like that of Brouwer's choice sequences- perhaps with an element of noise in their make up- may bring about a paradigm shift in deontics and things like Social Welfare functions (i.e. Social Choice) and so on such that the true meaning of what happened at Kurukshetra can be pedagogically elaborated rather than remain an object of purely aesthetic compre or incomprehension.
Thank you for your comment.

wolverine said...

Thank you for your prompt reply.
I can't say that I really follow your reasoning on this. As I mentioned, I'm not abreast of what is happening now in that direction so I can't really comment.
I looked up 'Iravan' on Wikipedia. Must admit I'd never heard that story before. Sounds very interesting- especially the 'hijra' angle.
Frankly, I don't think a lot of people are going to be able to get all the abstruse references. Still, if you persevere maybe it will kindle a debate.
I did look at your short post on 'Gita and Game theory'. Once again, I can't really see how Game theory comes into it. Essentially- and here I know you will agree with me- Game theory is only interesting where there is a degree of symmetry between the players. But how can there be symmetry between God and Man?
To say 'meaning is being gamed' does not really advance matters. I could see how that notion might apply if Arjuna was really engaging Krishna is a sort of Platonic dialog, but he isn't.
Anyway, I wish you best of luck with your approach.

windwheel said...

Really appreciate your taking the time to help me out like this.
Essentially I'm saying there is symmetric equilibrium in gita between God and Man thus making possible a evolutinarily stable state such that though Indglish writers totally misunderstood Gita still we're getting back to the 'true' interpretation.
Vaisnavism- Madhavacharya philosophy- depends crucially upon Man and God using same hermeneutic strategy. Brahma Sutra 'vyatirekho &c' prescribes reciprocity between worshipped and worshipper.
Essentially both sides are using Maynard Smith 'honest signalling' not 'cheap talk'.
That is pathos of Gita. Krishna reveals visvarupa to kill himself- just to save miserable 'drunkards, fishermen, slaves'.
God's duty to save all no matter what their condition without fucking judging them coz they were born into this type of family rather than that.
But Man is in communication with God! He wants to raise us all up!
How then say Gita is casteist, misogynistic shit?
Actually Kurukshetra kills off the 'class enemy' and totally takes down the pants of the fucking so called Brahmins.
That is why both Kings and Priests considered it the greatest antidote to the poison their own profession represented.
Anyway, just I wanted to thank you. You are doing important work so let me not disturb you.

windwheel said...

I'm saying God Man game is a symmetric game.
Otherwise there is neither karma nor dharma.
God's love for Man and vice versa involves costliest signals. It is a poorna Yagnya.
Heraclitus- known as the Dark One- said 'Gods and Men living each others deaths, live each others lives.'
But why speak more? In this age of information only the ignorant are not stupid and only the stupid are well informed.