Bridging the self and the universe VALLEY OF WORDS

In this second and ultimate part of the two-part review of Anubhav Kandpal's 'We Get to Live,' the reviewer discusses the intricate themes of identity, vitality of the present moment, and interconnectedness of things—weaving, in the process, a web of spirituality, perception, and transcendence

- SANJEEV CHOPRA

In "The Riddle of Experience versus Memory," Kahneman explores the dichotomy between our experiencing and remembering selves, shaping choices through anticipated memories. Kandpal and other thinkers emphasize letting go of rigid identities, surrendering to the present moment, and realizing interconnectedness. Exploring themes from Bhagavad Gita's Karmayog to modern philosophy, Kandpal weaves spirituality, perception, and transcendence, advocating a life of gratitude that balances subjective and objective reality.

In his Ted Talk on "The Riddle of Experience versus Memory," Daniel Kahneman makes a pertinent point: We don't choose between experiences; we choose between 'memories of experiences.' And indeed, 'our future choices are not about experiences, but anticipated memories' because the experiencing self is different from the remembering self. This brings us to the concept of identity, which is what we decide to give ourselves. Kandpal suggests that 'there is nothing to fear in letting go of one's identity in order to allow the emergence of a newer, more complex form of being.'

This brings us to the analogy of the painter and the painting, and how a painter transforms his landscape and/or his muse in her own unique, unparalleled way. As Picasso famously said, 'some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into a sun.'

Both Shankar in the East and Kant in the West have postulated that the visible world phenomenon can be understood only in the conceptual categories of space and time. But these are arbitrary constructs which help us to understand what goes on around us in the physical world. However, in and by themselves, there is no such thing as space and time. And time is relative, for as Einstein said: 'Time does not exist—we invented it. Time is what the clock says. The distinction between the past, present and future is only a stubborn persistent illusion.'

As the physicist Carlo Rovelli says: