Earthen Lamps:

Being born in a Hindu family, lamps became an integral part of my Life. As a child, it was fascinating to watch the spectacular display of lamps around on every occasion. When there was no festival it was the routine of lighting lamp at the family shrine at dawn/dusk and on every happy/unhappy event in the family.

They always symbolized individual and collective beliefs, emotions, greed, craving….

Whenever I cried, my mother or sister or brother would generally sober me down by taking me near the lamp and showing me a flickering lamp. I am sure I must have then stopped crying due to diversion of my attention to the flickering lamp. Later, when they felt confident that I would not burn myself out of ignorance about fire, they would ask me to light lamps on various occasions.

Soon more understanding about the lamps developed. I started observing various types of lamps earthen, brass, glass etc. types of wicks and lamp oil and their characteristics, their ability to burn and sustain in different environment. Often during the Deepavali or Diwali (the festival of Light) guardianship was also developed unknowingly. There would be a competition amongst the neighboring children as to whose lamp remains lit longer? Which entailed carefully choosing the ingredients, timely refilling and often keeping awake or waking up in the night to check that our lamps were still burning followed by boasting about our achievements.

Childhood soon passed away turning experiences in to nostalgia.

In the high school days, I came across a book in hindi by Rajneesh (later known as OSHO) named “Mittee ke Diye (Earthen Lamps)” The book had a lasting impression on my mind. I must admit, irrespective of my views about OSHO later on, Rajneesh was primarily responsible for my paradigm shift from physical to metaphysical concepts about the lamp and other things around.

A remarkable sentence in this book “All of us are like earthen lamps whose flame is constantly striving for the higher within us...” turned light from the earthen lamps in to a Ray of Insight….

On recollection, MIND deliberates ..

Can the flame exist without the holder, wick and oil? Or can a holder become a lamp without a flame merely with its form, shape, or substance it is made of?

What makes a good lamp that can sustain, enlighten the surrounding and yet be capable of lighting more lamps?

What type of wick and oil that can provide light without much soot and sparks?

Isn’t the right oil is akin to Right Conduct or Sila in daily Life? A pre-requisite to an ideal lamp whose flame must sustain longer in any body, strive upward and yet capable of lighting other lamps dispelling the darkness of ignorance?

In what way we are different from the earthen lamps?

A combination of Nama-Rupa or Mind-Matter with a single goal of survive and Emancipate?

Mind wanders ....