Edith Wharton once
famously remarked, ‘There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or
the mirror that reflects it’.
Candles are indeed delightful sources of
light. We light a candle to dispel the darkness around us. As such, we are all wonderful candles,
in our own sweet little ways, having the ability innate within us to dispel the
darkness around us, in our very own sweet, kutty little ways, however small they may
be!
At the same time,
mirrors too have the capability within them, to double or to multiply the potential
latent within the candle! Ain’t it? Indeed, they take on themselves the
initiative and the zeal to support and to encourage and to motivate the candle that burns!
Moreover, mirrors
could also be, like Lewis Hyde tells us in his amazing read titled, The Gift, sharing your knowledge with others,
the good books that you read with others etc; It could also mean, acknowledging
the candles who made a difference to your life – your parents, your teachers, your
spiritual gurus, your librarians, your friends, your mentors, your siblings –
all those who burned themselves out to make you who you are, today!
On the delightful
occasion of the start of a vibrant new semester, today - the even semester - which
also happens to be the last semester for our final year students, we had a
simple demonstration in class with a candle and a mirror. For this specific purpose,
I had taken along with me to class, a candle, a matchbox and a mirror. After
having turned off a fan that was on high-breeze mode, we then proceeded to have
the candle lighted up, and then, making the candle face the mirror, we then set
out on our deliberations. The question put forth to each of the students was, “What
does this image mean to you?” or “What does this image remind you of?”
Now, let’s have a
glimpse into what our students had to say on the ‘Candle and the Mirror’ demo
in their class today.
Well, their
observations were all real, intense revelations of sorts! Each of them spoke
from their hearts, from their very own points of view, and that, ladies and
gentlemen, made the difference!
Just giving y’all
snippets from the observations of our II PG students, in my class with them today.
Proud of y’all kiddos. Kudos!!!
1. ‘To me the candle symbolizes
a new beginning’.
2. ‘To me, the candle
is a beautiful reminder to fulfilling our purpose and our call in life’.
3. ‘To me, the candle
represents how powerful and original art could really be’.
4. ‘The candle
contains two aspects within it – it’s both beautiful and dangerous at the same
time! So it depends on the purpose for which you make use of it’.
5. ‘A candle doesn’t hold
back anything with it. It keeps giving all that it has!’
6. ‘To me, the candle
represents knowledge and enlightenment. You reflect the knowledge that you’ve
gained over a period of time, with others around you, thus enlightening them’.
7. ‘The candle tells
me that, come what may, keep burning. Keep burning continually’.
8. ‘The candle to me,
represents the other-oriented or other-centred life’.
9. ‘The candle to me
is a way of saying, be a light in someone’s life’.
10. ‘A candle melts. So
even if it means suffering or sacrificing yourself, you still keep burning to
light others’.
11. ‘The candle-mirror
analogy tells me that, through the sacrifices of others, we today derive our
succour, our strength and our inspiration’.
12. ‘To me the candle
means, never give up, in spite of your insurmountable circumstances’.
13. ‘The candle-mirror
analogy teaches me of the difference between illusion and reality’.
14. ‘The candle
teaches me to dispel the darkness of ignorance’.
15. ‘The candle has
two sides to it – destructive and constructive. So it depends on how you make
use of it. Moreover, without the wick, it cannot burn at all. So the wick is the
real inspiration to the candle to burn!’
16. ‘The wax that melts
down the candle tells me that, still you can be remade and reworked. So rise
up!’
17. ‘It symbolizes survival
and sustainability, to me!’
18. ‘Just a small
spark was enough to light up this candle. Similarly, a small spark can ignite a
huge fire’ (impact).
19. ‘The candle is a
symbol of resilience or a strong inner spirit’.
20. ‘The candle is
something that brings focus and direction to our paths’.
21. ‘It is useful to
everyone in every possible way’.
22. ‘The candle tells
me the candid fact that, darkness in itself cannot drive out darkness. Only light
can!’
23. ‘Although it keeps
dying every other moment, it continues to give hope and realization to others’.
24. ‘A candle never
fails to give its best, inspite of the situations around it’.
25. ‘To shine, you
have to burn! And be persistent’.
26. ‘The candle to me,
is a bridge between reality and expectation’.
27. ‘This candle tells
me about the impermanence of life. So it also motivates us to give our best’.
28. ‘The candle is a
reminder that, we all exist with a definite purpose. There’s a reason for our
existence. Be it big or small!’
29. ‘Nothing is lost
by sharing one’s light with others’.
30. ‘The candle helps
in lighting up the undesirable, the marginalized. It gives hope and light!’
Thank you class! It
was such a rewarding, therapeutic exercise to begin our day with! (And our
semester too!)
Best wishes to you
all!
[image clicks: David Paul; Mobile Phone & Transcripting: Binu
Jerline; Thank you both!]
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