You Can Do Anything! Can You Really?

In February this year, two seemingly unrelated things got me on a thinking and reflection spree. First up, something which caught national attention. A satirical improv and ‘dark humour’ show shot to infamy thanks to some crass remarks by the ‘esteemed’ panel of famous stand-up comics, podcasters and social media influencers. The remarks were derogatory to the very structure of an Indian family, the cornerstone of our society. In no way were the comments funny or entertaining. It was rightly flagged as such.Immediately, online and social activists pushed local governments into registering cases against the panellists. Soon enough, not just that episode, but every other episode of the show was taken down. All the panellists tendered unconditional public apologies. We wait to see if the cases against them will be dropped and if they can ever face the public with the same dignity or brand value as before.The second event was something that occurred at a semi-personal level. I was travelling on a flight from Varanasi to Goa, from attending the Mahakumbh to attending a dear friend’s wedding. Across the aisle from me, on the flight, were three gentlemen, probably in their 40s. One seemed like a foreigner and the other two were Indian. The Indian men took it upon themselves to give the foreigner a lowdown on Goa—things to do, places to visit, food to eat, etc. After talking about Goa’s famous beaches, the men went on to say, ‘You know in Goa you can get drinks (alcohol) anywhere; it’s quite easy.’ The foreigner replied, ‘What do you mean?’ One of them replied, ‘There are drinks everywhere. In shops, in shacks, at cafes, anywhere on the road. Goa is quite open, you know? It’s not like other Indian states. You can drink anywhere in Goa.’ The foreigner shook his head. The Indian man continued with a smirk, ‘You can do anything in Goa, in fact.’ All three of them sniggered..Can you, in fact, do anything in Goa? When I recounted this incident to resident Goan friends, they shook their heads in dismay. And sure enough, they all commented, ‘We are hundred per cent certain that the men who said these things were not Goan.’ I have several friends from Goa who do not share the view that Goa is only a place for debauchery. Reckless partying is not what the holiday destination is about. Goa has much more to offer. True, entertainment and leisure might be cheaper and far more accessible here, but who grants people the right to do anything they want, anywhere they want?Between these two events, my mind kept going to Swami Chinmayananda’s most prescient passage from the book Kindle Life. Swamiji draws a fundamental difference between freedom and licentiousness. He writes—.The essential nature of man being absolute Freedom, he detests any shackles being put on him. To him, injunctions and precepts are like a red rag to a bull; therefore, he revolts against the idea of any spiritual practice of self-denial. Little does he realise that freedom is essentially built on intelligent self-restraint and discipline. For instance, the traffic lights on our roads are undoubtedly a restraint laid down by the government on our freedom; but such restraint alone lends meaning to the freedom of movement and checks its degradation into licentiousness.Swami Chinmayananda.Should we count only on laws, police and courts to keep us in check? Should society bring back stigma, reproach and moral policing to keep our tongues and indulgences in check? This is where spirituality and religion matter. It gives us an innate sense of what is right and wrong and keeps us on a path of virtue and discipline. Just because we can say anything, and do anything, should we?There is plenty to reflect on between what is freedom and licentiousness, and how we easily lose sight of the former and slip into the abyss of the latter. Anyway, it was a completely different experience for me in Goa this time around, as opposed to what the men said, I avoided the beaches and pubs and went to some of the lesser-known temples in Goa. What a treat to the mind, eye and the body! You can actually do anything (in Goa), you know. Like visiting a Mahadev temple standing the test of time over twelve centuries.

You Can Do Anything! Can You Really?

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