Essays The Beauty of Nature & Stephen Hawking
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The Beauty of Nature
Byron said, “I love not man the less but nature more”.
The poets are the lovers of nature. The countless objects of nature or things of beauty that are a joy forever. God is the Artist and nature is His art.
“The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth His handiwork”
Bible
Anyone who is blind to such beauties of nature and deaf to her music must be dead in the soul. The visible shapes of nature, her sights and sounds speak to the poets the language of love and beauty.
William Wordsworth the greatest poet of nature says, “my heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky”.
The beauties of Kashmir beggar description. The clear cool waters, the gentle breezes, the coiling rivers, the bubbling springs, the freshwater lakes and the snow-clad mountains of Kashmir are very charming indeed. While praising the beauty of Kashmir a poet has aptly said:
"Hail! Paradise of endless pleasures!
Hail! Beautiful and beloved Kashmir."
Baron loved the stormy ocean and called it the Image of God and the Throne of the Almighty. The waves of the ocean Sing divine music. When the full moon sketches her silvery beams and shines on the earth, there is a commotion in the sea and mountainous tides rise high as if to touch the moon.
The moon is a pale maiden and the ocean is her lover. The moonlit nights are the image of beauty. And in the dark nights, the stars shine like sleepless sentinels (watchmen) of the night. Byron said, “Ye stars! Which are the poetry of heaven.”
The snow-clad mountains with the neighbor, with the sky, are the greatest sight. Torrential rains wash them, white snow falls on their forehead, the breezes and storm blow Cross them.
Nature has been very generous to both Kashmir and Switzerland. In springtime there, Meadows are gay with the lowest flowers and streams sleep and dance merrily as they flow down their valleys.
Painters make pictures of the grassy fields, streams, and flowering trees. Those works of art are sold at high prices. But come out! Here are the beauteous sights of nature, more beautiful than any painting, which is, after all, imitation.
Nature is the best painter in technicolor. The beauty of the sunset beggars description. And dawn has inspired the poets to write poetry that moves the words of millions.
The butterfly with its silken wings flits from flower to flower. At night the glow-worm lights its lamp among the flowers and grass. The nightingale pours about her heart in sweet, sad music, while the skylark sings ecstatic lyrics. Nature is love, nature is beauty, nature is a joy.
Stephen Hawking
The acutest of intellect that probably held the keys to opening the door of understanding the mysteries of time and space has been lost, at least in the physical realm of our existence.
The cynosure for millions of inquiring minds he was the pinnacle of scientific temper and enterprising intrigue. He breathed his last at the ripe old age of 76.
An Unparalleled Genius
Given two years to live, in 1963, he was diagnosed with a rare and debilitating motor-neuron disorder called Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS(Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis).
He did not accept the writing on the wall and lived for another 55 years. Deprived of the abilities to write or move, he used his powers to bring out something of his thought and creativity.
His Achievements
Among his many achievements, the post of Lucasian Professor at Cambridge for three decades was a highlight. The post was once honored by Sir Isaac Newton himself.
He was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 1982, an honor just second to knighthood.
At the age of 32, he was inducted as one of the youngest Fellows in the Royal Society. Even though he was a British citizen, he was awarded the American Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009.
A man of miracles, he refused limitations of circumstance many times. Just like when he survived Pneumonia by having a Tracheotomy in 1985 which left his speech impaired. Undefeated, he started using a computerized speech synthesizer. And miraculously the progression of his ALS froze to almost static.
His Works
From the complex world of sub-atomic Quantum Theory to the unfettered expansion of the Cosmos, the great mind played a crucial role on both the edges of human understanding and curiosity of Physics.
He posited the "Hawking's Paradox" that suggests a mathematical inconsistency between Einstein's theory of relativity and quantum theory. A challenge still undefeated in the field of Physics.
It was his bestselling book titled "A Brief History of Time" that made him a star. The book has sold an estimated 10 million copies since its release in 1988.
Revealing the complexities of the Universe for the non-academicians and non-physicists through the book brought his name among domestic households.
Hawking Radiation
Using Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, he and fellow British scientist Roger Penrose pointed toward a definitive beginning and end of space and time mosaic.
This led to the theory that black holes aren’t completely black, but emit radiation and eventually disappear and the demystification of Black Holes as being really black abyssal spheres of despair. In other words, they dissipate energy, explode and eventually disappear into insignificance.
The radiation named "Hawking Radiation" linked black holes with the rest of the Universe and provided an alternative to the erstwhile perception of black holes as the dead-end for the laws of Physics.
Other Side of Hawking
Far from being perfect, he did have his faults and follies. His first wife Jane Wilde considered him to be a very egotistical, misogynistic and unflattering image of the man.
Perhaps he was not even the best Physicist of his time and famously lost a few bets with his peers like the "information paradox i.e. loss of physical information stored in a black hole at its demise" or that the discovery of "Higgs-Boson particle" was not possible.
The fact that he never won a Nobel Prize does not help the claim of him being the most successful in his field. Even though he did win a plethora of other awards like Albert Einstein Award, the Fundamental Physics Prize etc. and had an incredible 12 Honorary Degrees.
His Belief
Even his vocal commentaries of God and religions received both flak and admiration. Unlike Einstein who believed in invisible guidance (in the Universe), Hawking declared that God was not needed in the creation or running of the Universe in his book Grand Design.
In an interview with CNN, he opined that God may exist but was not necessary to explain the creation of Universe as, "Science is increasingly answering the questions that used to be in the province of religion."
Turning to philosophy and metaphysics, he relegated religion to a realm circumscribed by Physics. Apart from his fierce scientific curiosity, it was his rapier-like wit and impeccable sense of humor that made him a darling to so many of his peers and admirers.
He showed an indefatigable spirit and travelled in hot-air balloons and zero-gravity Boeing 727s. From appearing on TV in shows like Star Trek: Next Generation, The Big Bang Theory, The Simpsons etc. and his life being translated to film screens through the much-acclaimed movie, "Theory of Everything", he enthralled and captivated numerous hearts.
A Good Human
Even though he had a streak of nasty arrogance in him, he amply showed politeness and compassion exclusive to only the very best of humanity. Not surrendering to his natural physical incapacities and leveraging his seemingly supernatural abilities, he became an icon that transcended science.
The iconography of a wheelchair-bound man with head rested on side spinning the most magnificent of "scientific fairy tales" will surely withstand the test of time and space.
He regarded aggression as the biggest human failing or a relic from the "Caveman" days and archaic for the present age. He had his reservations about Artificial Intelligence and shared concerns about the environment and human tendency to self-destruct.
Rejecting the atmosphere of isolation and describing Donald Trump as "a demagogue appealing to the lowest common denominator" (in ITV's Good Morning Britain) he always had trenchant observations on myriad issues.
He will forever be a lodestar for the triumph of hope over adversity, ability over fate and will over the body. As the man himself put it, “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up."
He is survived by 3 children and 3 grandchildren. Although, his demise has left a yawning Black Hole of intellect and intelligence that might never be filled. Maybe he is still extant in what he would call a better part of the Multiverse.
