Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Evolutionary Wisdom ?
In the South, we have this age-old custom during dussehera of staging a doll-exhibition called golu in Brahmin households. The most common exhibit being the depiction of the ten incarnations of vishnu in the order of chronology. When i was looking at them, I was struck with the similarity between the sequence of incarnations and the theory of evolution.
Matsya(fish)-->kurma(tortoise-amphibian)-->varaha(boar)-->narasimha(half-man/half ape)-->vamana(dwarfed man -with stunted growth)-->parasurama(axe wielding primitive man)-->Rama(just king-epitome of goodness)-->Krishna(worldly-wise--Machiavellian cunning)........
I felt like shouting 'eureka' upon discerning this pattern.. Could it be possible that our forbears were cognizant of the evolutionary pattern of life?
Or is it just a mere coincidence(which seems very very unlikely)?
If indeed they were aware of it, it opens up so many vistas of thought. Did they know it because of rigorous empirical study(which, again is unlikely), or was it the result of the collective memory of the human race(nay.. living species) residing in this part of the world.
Pour in with your views.
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In the South, we have this age-old custom during dussehera of staging a doll-exhibition called golu in Brahmin households. The most common exhibit being the depiction of the ten incarnations of vishnu in the order of chronology. When i was looking at them, I was struck with the similarity between the sequence of incarnations and the theory of evolution.
Matsya(fish)-->kurma(tortoise-amphibian)-->varaha(boar)-->narasimha(half-man/half ape)-->vamana(dwarfed man -with stunted growth)-->parasurama(axe wielding primitive man)-->Rama(just king-epitome of goodness)-->Krishna(worldly-wise--Machiavellian cunning)........
I felt like shouting 'eureka' upon discerning this pattern.. Could it be possible that our forbears were cognizant of the evolutionary pattern of life?
Or is it just a mere coincidence(which seems very very unlikely)?
If indeed they were aware of it, it opens up so many vistas of thought. Did they know it because of rigorous empirical study(which, again is unlikely), or was it the result of the collective memory of the human race(nay.. living species) residing in this part of the world.
Pour in with your views.
Labels: mythology
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