Wednesday, April 9, 2008

On love and purity...

Something thats been doing the rounds in my head for a few days now...

Lets assume a few variables first:
L -- love
P -- purity
X -- unknown
S -- sense of selflessness/service.

I have come to believe, over the past n days, that the degree or extent of selflessness we have towards anybody, is a function of the above mentioned variables. Here is how,
For any form of service to be honestly executed, there must be:
1. A threshold minimum level of love in our hearts towards the destined recipient of service.
OR/and
2. A threshold minimum level of purity that we observe in the destined recipient.

It is worth mentioning here, that inherently, the 2 points above are interconnected, in that one is a prerequisite for the presence of the other.

To take a few examples:

1) Hearts melt upon seeing a little baby. And no amount of strife, in the process of its taking care, can ever cause that love to end. Here therefore, the baby's purity and innocence induce a sense of loving care towards it in us. Vice versa too is possible as is obvious.

2) A couple stay together through thick and thin. Individual mistakes are worked out/forgiven, owing to the underlying belief in their mutual purity, which in turn is derived from the sense of love towards each other. Of course, the extent and validity of such a bond may come into question in the case of repeated misdemeanors. Beyond scope, beyond current jurisdiction.


However, experience tells me He never created such simplistic equations in human nature. Thus, comes flying in the unknown parameter, that which has the power to nullify as well as bolster the fruits of the defined variables.

I perceive that unknown to be the coefficient of our personal growth. The closer we are to Him:
1. The more we shall identify each individual as nothing less than His living embodiment. Thus inducing the sense of "purity in all" (even latent) and the sense of everyone being worthy of our love.
2. The more love we shall have, to freely give to all those who may be in need.

For both the above points, the highest example that comes to mind right now is Mother Teresa.

Now that I have (hopefully) clarified my views, we may proceed to the mathematics of it.
I propose the following formula for the extent of selfless service that one can give to another:

S = (L^m) + (P^n) + (X)

To add another layer of subjective complexity to this fascinating mix, the powers are themselves functions of the person in us. As in, it depends on factors such as one's:
1. values
2. upbringing
3. experiences
4. et al

or in short, the powers are functions of THE mysterious "growth" variable.

Hence, the equation becomes:

S = (L^f(X)) + (P^(f(X)) + (X)

Thus, as we move ahead, and trivialize the boundaries between entities such as love, purity and selflessness further and further, its not too hard to see, that as a blackbox,

S = F(X).

Also, an important point here is:
As we all grow, at our own pace, in our own time, it would only be natural for our 'X' values to come closer and higher together. And thus, as we approach higher levels of "goodness", the variable distinctions in L, V, X to evaporate. Thus the last equation above, which right now seems to be a criminal instance of approximation and generalization, shall become THE most accurate expression for all that is good in us.

Further proof perhaps, of the underlying simplicity in all of His infinitely complex workings.

Cheers!
Good Morning!

3 comments:

Wanderer ... said...

Whoa !
A great "journey" of finding(read knowing) the "unknown" !

great !

Justin said...

thankuji! :)

arvind batra said...

ah! The natural tendency of human beings to define every emotion mathematically, to formalize every notion, to create a magical potion to reproduce that emotion.

Mixed with the mystical parameters, unquantifiable variables, and "et al" constants, nevertheless a good attempt! :)

Cheers to South Park!

Q. - While people will always act within the bounds of human nature -- good people being good and bad people being bad, it takes religion to make good people bad.

A. - "Well, many religions also give people good reasons NOT to do bad things. And while people may do terrible things in the name of religion or via religion, they may have well still done them without the religion there -- it's just a justification provided for a choice already made."

-- Matt Stone & Trey Parker
(From South Park FAQ's)

Bet you didn't expect THIS from the ones who made Cartman and the gang! :)

Dilbert

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