The Road Warrior

By: VITHAL C NADKARNI

At the fork, the poet Robert Frost went on road less travelled. And that supposedly made all the difference to his life. The poem is, therefore, often cited as a credo for the nonconformist. But is it really an invitation to go off the beaten track? For, the title of the poem is, The Road Not Taken!

And it begins with regret: the poet is sorry that he could not travel on both the roads simultaneously. It’s more about the choices one makes on life’s journey and their inexorable consequences.

Also, speculation about what might have been had he opted for the well-trodden path is just that: speculation. The likelihood of being waylaid on a well-beaten track cannot really be compared with that of being mugged on a less-travelled route. In life’s lottery, a lot depends on outlook: one could choose to cling to Murphy’s Law —if anything thing can go wrong, it will — or go for Pangloss Paradigm — that all is for the best in this best of worlds! Doctor Pangloss was mentor to Candide, a young man who is living a sheltered life and being indoctrinated with optimism just as Prince Gautama was by his father Suddhodana in a pleasure palace.

The abrupt cessation of this idyll is the subject of Voltaire’s masterpiece. It led Siddhartha Gautama to lay the foundations of one of the world’s great religions.

Although disillusionment did spark the Buddha’s flight from “paradise” and his eventual awakening, his message does not endorse a hopeless view of life. Not only did he teach the cause and end of suffering, but also the way of ending it! So don’t worry, be happy.