Invictus

-Arnay Shukla

"Invictus" is a short Victorian poem by the English poet William Ernest Henely (1849–1903). It was written in 1875 and published in 1888 — originally with no title — in his first volume of poems, Book of Verses, in the section Life and Death (Echoes).
Invictus is a poem that helps you to connect your inner self and lets you know the immense courage you have as a human. It inspires the very root of you as you face challenges at every corner while walking down the alley of life. 

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

OPEN DEBATE SESSION ON ‘TECHNOLOGY HAS ENHANCED LIFE’ IN TECHIDEATE '16

-Arnay Shukla
Event Coordinator

The Panel of the debate.
On the mic speaking is Mr. Arjit Yadav

The philosophy club of MUJ, Sophia, organized and conducted an open debate session on the topic ‘Technology has enhanced life’ in the technical fest of the college, Techideate '16. The event was marked by the gracious presence of Dr. Anthony Savari Raj L, the Head of Department of Arts and the teacher coordinator of the Sophia club along with Dr. Gaur, Head of Department of Economics. Akash Dayal, the president of the club and Karishma Lala, the general secretary of the club added to the auspiciousness of the event by their presence. Also present was Mamta Bisht, the event coordinator, who played a pivotal role in conducting the debate.

Dr Gaur and Dr. Anthony

The session began at one o’ clock in the noon. The panel consisted of six members, having two students and one faculty member on each team. The team speaking for the motion had Mr. Hitesh Bakshi and Mr. Arjit Yadav as the speakers, led by the faculty member Ms. Ambika Bhagat while the team that stood against the motion had Prof. Mohit Jain leading with Mr. Chitwan Gautam and Mr. Kaushal Bansal as speakers. The session started with an introductory note by the moderator of the debate, Akash Dayal. In the meantime, a vote was taken amongst the audience, by Karishma and Mamta, asking them to vote whether they stood for the motion or against the motion.

The first speech of the session was given by Mr. Arjit, who made it impressing by putting up some really valid points and so it continued thereafter with the speech of one speaker from each side putting up their points and challenging the speakers on the other side. The last speech was given by Prof. Mohit Jain summing up his point of view and answering the points made by the opponents. Next followed the Q&A round, where the members of the audience asked the questions to the speakers and they tried their very best to satisfy the queries put while defending their stand. After this, the rebuttals took place where once again a there was a healthy discussion between the two teams and many questions were raised and the answers given. A final vote of the audience was then taken, and calculating the sway in the votes, Akash declared Ms. Ambika Bhagat and her team as the winner of the debate.

The event was concluded and vote of thanks was given by Akash, giving special thanks to Dr. Anthony for his permission to conduct the event, mentioning the efforts he himself put to make the event a success. The ending note was given by Dr. Anthony, citing the need of such a debate session during the ongoing Technical Fest and the technical era of which we all are a part of. He also made a note about the relationship among the philosophy and technology and how they are interrelated, and gave a slight but a significant difference between having a technique and a technology for doing it.

Thus, the event marked its end with a thunderous applause by everyone present.

From Female to Feminine

-Dr Anthony Savari Raj
Man being a three dimensional being, comprising of body, mind and heart, it is perhaps easy for him to experience his oneness with a woman in body and even in heart.

But the real challenge of unison, I believe, comes to his mind with its plus ultra mentality of distinction and separation. It’s here the so-called male chauvinism originates. It is precisely for this reason, every man is invited and even expected to undergo a “circumcision of his mind,” and to subscribe to the feminine, and not merely to fe“male.”

Subscribing to the feminine, first of all, would imply that he entertains, inculcates and practices a RECEPTIVE attitude toward life, things, and reality. After all, it is by receiving, conceiving takes place, and thus a new being is created……

(Excerpts from my forthcoming book: LADY PHILOSOPHY)

HAPPY WO “MAN’S” DAY!

Freedom from Nation or Scientific Caste?

-Dr. Anthony Savari Raj, 

As we have been witnessing these days the hot, sensitive and vehement debate on “freedom from nation or freedom in nation?” we will do well to engage ourselves with another important concern that needs to be equally or even more urgently addressed. It indeed concerns freedom from what I call the “scientific caste.”

The issue of freedom from nation or freedom in nation indeed involves the question on the caste structure of the Indian society and all its ill effects. To be sure, this issue has affected and still affects many deeply. But it is important to take note that it is the “scientific caste” today that seems to have accumulated a power on life and death immensely superior to any other caste of any other-period of human memory. The priorities, values and visions of the traditional culture such as ours seem to be at loggerhead with the “projects” of the technological world-view which seem to be penetrating every nook and corner of the earth, even faster than the wind.

Together with the blessings, we are only beginning to experience the deleterious consequences of the dominant technocratic world-view with signs of decay everywhere: the increase of violence, the decrease of happiness, the growth of poverty, the going down of self-confidence and in an unmistakable way, the response of the Earth making herself unfit for the human habitat. What is really significant is, whatever may be one’s traditional caste affiliation, the affliction caused by the scientific caste is universal and it affects ALL, individually and collectively. It is not limited to any group.

The common task ahead of us, therefore, is to wake up differently and dismantle gently the technocratic complex by voicing and asserting commonly, at the same time, uniquely our own visions and priorities of life, remaining at the same time, awake to our own peculiarities, strengths as well as weaknesses.

It is said that a bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because her trust is not on the branch but on its own wings. Our concern on the break-up or the break-down of the nation is of course genuine, crucial and understandable. But what needs an urgent attention and care is our wings which are being broken and mutilated by the technocratic vision and mega machine, which indeed reduce reality to human beings, human beings to male, male to his thinking, thinking to his reason, and reason to calculation. And calculation can only cripple life.

Isn't life more than calculus? Can all the fish in the ocean of life and reality be captured by the technological or mathematical net? Perhaps a proper response to this question might lead to a better orientation to the issue of nationalism.

Social Reconstruction and genetic roots of past

-Akash Dayal, President

The chemical can be utilised for its intrinsic nature until its is diluted and once it gets diluted either one way out is to re-synthesise it or seek out a suitable compound for its further utilisation or else its own new property may not remain that beneficiary. I see social social re-construction of any society seeing better future in the same way, the demand of time is to either adapt with what goes around show a great flexibility or stand on your own pillars, as strong as you can withstand any storm or turbulence. Both needs effort and the people who build the society to decide which way to go, as both will need collective conscience and total involvement of every citizen for the dream and wish to stand and do something good for the world which he contains within and the the world which contains him.