Monday, December 29, 2008

Found and Lost

In The Gardener 66, the poet Tagore depicted a madman, wearing an iron chain on his waist, was seeking a touchstone able to change iron into gold. The search became his life – he continued picking up pebbles, touching the chain and throwing them away without even looking a change on the chain – until a boy asked, “Where did you come at the golden chain about your waist?”


Thus, the madman realized he already found and lost the touchstone somewhere unknown. When he returned his footsteps to search anew the lost treasure, he could never find it, so he became madder and more distraught.


You feel bad if you never find what you seek. If you found and lost what you desire and you don’t know where you missed it unconsciously, you may feel worse – tormented by regret, self-accusation, and disappointment.


Some situation can be worse – you found the treasure what you crave, you cherished it very much, but at that timing, you were just too weak to keep it, you saw it slip away from your hand consciously, and then it was occupied by someone who was more capable than you just at that special moment. You were tortured by self-accusation, jealousy and indignation.


Sometimes, life is beyond our control and luck plays a critical role in it. In the film “Match Point”, Chris Wilton murdered his love to keep his lucky life, and he said, “I’d rather be lucky than good.” What a cold point!

7 comments:

V said...

At least he was honest!

Anonymous said...

I couldn't agree with you more about luck plays a vital role in our personal lives.

"I'd rather be lucky than good"

so cold but so true!

Jade Meng said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jade Meng said...

Daniel, do you think we also create our own luck? Our luck at present is determined by our behaviors in the past, our reaction right now and our family and social inheritage?

After I watched "Match Point", I still think "I'd rather be good than lucky." Chris would not have an easy life after he killed an innocent old lady, his own child and his love, although he could escape legal punishment.

Jade Meng said...

V, I don't get what you meant when you said,"At least he was honest!" The madman in the verse, the character in the film, or someone else?

V said...

Oh, I simply meant he was honest (to himself) by admitting that he'd rather be lucky than good...of course by no means approving of his conduct - which sounds like OJ Simpson's to me, though I haven't watched the film!

Or perhaps my comment was out of context without having actually watched it.

Jade Meng said...

Anyhow, your point is right - one has to be honest to oneself first.