Darkness has its own mystique and its own fantasies, notwithstanding the fact that darkness has always instilled fear in our hearts, and we consider light as an antidote to darkness.

If we have eyes, and if still we can’t see

This is Darkness and its weird chemistry- Dr. Anand

If we revisit the story of the original couple’s loss of Eden and bliss, after eating the fruit of knowledge, some questions become viable. If knowledge is light, how come it broke upon them like a curse? Were they living in a state of ignorance or darkness before tasting the forbidden fruit?

Can we say the animals, birds and waters, created by God, like us, don’t possess any intelligence and they are living in a state of ignorance because they have not tasted the fruit of knowledge? I believe, it is a state of neither ignorance, nor darkness, it is a state of innocence, in which Adam and Eve also lived.  They possess original intelligence which supplies them all the wisdom that they need to survive and serve their creator. It was only man who deviated from the immortal race, and went on to supplement his innocence with intelligence, and now, artificial, in the hope it would create heaven-like bliss on the earth and grant Masterly powers to man over Nature.

Did knowledge make the original couple happy? The answer is unqualified ‘No’. Because, with innocence, they lost peace and happiness also. Knowledge was a spurious light which finally started spreading darkness all around. In the beginning, Adam and Eve might have felt elated, but soon they realized their folly.  Looking back, we can say man, who wanted knowledge, actually bargained for a state of darkness, marked with doubt, in which we still continue. We have gathered the thick fog of reason as a result of which the celestial visions have become eclipsed. Wisdom has eluded mankind. We are living in grey areas of existence, unable to explain a thousand things. This is the darkness of doubt, coupled with the darkness of despair which marks mankind, and spares the animal kind.

Depiction of Adam and Eve – National Gallery of Antique Art in Rome, Italy

Isn’t it a surprise, over the centuries, even after great spiritual scriptures, we are still praying for light?  When we see a candle burning here or there, like moth we grow winds and start strutting about it, till we end up burning our own wings. Our love for light is so compelling, because we are born of darkness. Love for Knowledge landed us in the Lake of Darkness.

THE LAKE OF DARKNESS

Darkness has its own mystique and its own fantasies, notwithstanding the fact that darkness has always instilled fear in our hearts, and we consider light as an antidote to darkness. Even as kids, when the night fell, we ran to the lap of our mothers where we felt safe. It is this fear of the darkness that makes us love the light. The glow-worm creates magic in a dark night. For a traveller, it is the first shine of the light that assures him that he is nearing his resting place. So, are light houses to the sailing ships.

Darkness has its positive side too. Darkness and sleep go together. Can we forget the role of dreams in our lives? Darkness is a catalyst for setting our imagination in operation. Light shrinks the objects into their factual reality leaving nothing to imagination.

But man, by his very nature, is attracted by things that mystify. Unknown things cast a spell on our minds. A forest has a distinct pull on our minds, but if it is ‘dark’ too, it attracts us differently. A lighted house has its own romance, but if the house is in darkness, its hardcore romance stirs our imagination.

Darkness has its positive side too. Darkness and sleep go together. Can we forget the role of dreams in our lives? Darkness is a catalyst for setting our imagination in operation. Light shrinks the objects into their factual reality leaving nothing to imagination. But darkness gives new habitation and a name to things which do not exist at all.  Horror is also a genre of darkness categorized as romance. Romance is something which is far removed from reality. In fact, light brings us face to face with reality, whereas darkness offers us a free ride into imaginative fantasies.

Evil has a soft corner for darkness. Most of the dreadful acts are carried out when it is dark. Macbeth kills King Duncan when he is in sleep. Lear turns mad in the darkness of night. Demons have a free hand in darkness. We often read in fairy stories, that evil figures and phantoms are seen only in the darkness. As soon as there is light, they disappear. Smugglers, bootleggers, thieves, abductors, and lovers – all wait for the night to carry out their plans. A river which flows giving soulful music during the day, turns dreadful as the shadows fall. Darkness has its own weird magic.

KNOLWLEDGE VERSUS LIGHT

The problem with modern civilization is that we love knowledge, but we are afraid of light. We like to stay in dark zones. Grey areas tempt us because we believe ‘To err is human’. We need this dark ambience to commit mistakes, and thus lay a claim to our humanity.  In fact, it is the dark which keep us most comfortable, because our failings and misses do not come to light.  Moreover, we are no lovers of perfection. We admire great sages like Lord Buddha. We wish to follow them. But we do not want to go over to them. They are living in a state of Light. We prefer our world, saturated with mild darkness, we love our conflicts, our falsehoods, our deceits, and at the end, our prayers when we commit puny sins. That is humanity, and its love for the darkness which keeps it from being exposed to light.

THE MARCH OF CIVILIZATION

The march of civilization can be best described as the march of darkness towards light. If we are still marching, it means we have not arrived at the zone of light and wisdom is still an illusion. Nobody can say with authority: He is the Master of Wisdom or Master of Knowledge. All these things which men have in part only, have a great corresponding portion of ignorance and darkness.

THE LIGHTHOUSE

Some light houses were created by gods. As man’s civilization progressed, it was expected there would be an explosion of light. But, there were explosions of bombs. It was not wisdom, but knowledge which had exploded, killing millions. Since then, the darkness of knowledge has started spreading and it is extinguishing the small candles of light which the great Lighthouses had lighted in the hearts of men. It is a pity man who started with innocence to knowledge stopped at knowledge. He was unable to gather any wisdom from his knowledge. Misplaced priorities of education paradigms are responsible for drawing a wedge between knowledge and wisdom. We thought that information is the ultimate thing. But, this information destroyed our innocence. And the Knowledge that was obtained from it, could not be assimilated into wisdom. Wisdom has always eluded mankind. Light is the ultimate state of enlightenment. How far are we from light? Instead of using knowledge as a means to liberate mankind, we started using it as a power to subjugate nature’s empire. It was unwisdom of man, which spread a sheet of ignorance before him, on which he stepped with misplaced pride.

As we are going forward, we think we have gathered a lot of power over creative forces. But, there are certain things we are barred from seeing or knowing. Yet we trespassed those limits, thinking that knowledge will light our way to greatness, or even masterhood, but reverse has taken place. It has actually swept our lives with darkness, and doubt. And we have started loving our existential plank, enjoying our dark environs. Are we not enthusiastic protagonists of the ‘darkling plain’ and commanders of ‘ignorant armies that clash by night?’

___________________

Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"