An Unlike Discourse of an Expert

Words possess a power. They can make and break a person, particularly, when they flow by the side of an expert. Yes. That’s why we love to listen to the renowned personalities. Their experiences provide us a boost at the time of our self-dejection. And, their footprints convince us to appreciate hard work for higher goals.  

But, to this dismay. I experienced something adverse, just recently, when I participated in a week-long workshop at Kashmir University. There I listened to a well famed Advocate and expert of Valley. I always loved to attend the gatherings of this influential speaker, wherever he would speak. He would admire me in terms of his mark as an advocate. However, attending his discourse, this time, was like a ‘horrible nightmare’. It left me distressed and disappointed. Yet, I learned a lot, though negative, by this time. I still cannot rub it out of my mind. What was a session devoted to Article 35A of Constitution of India, turned out to be something inexplicable.

Hitherto, I knew this expert as a ‘motivational speaker’, but in that session I found him as a person who does everything to beat you. ‘Audience attending him were told to come prepared on the issue’. Yet most of them didn’t come so. True it is. Then, those who spoke were made to realise their bleak future. Perhaps he’s a habit of wining. Or, the audience (students) out there hadn’t prepared well on the issue. However, does that infer, he’d beat hell out of every such person who forwarded an argument. Experience says, ‘Experts listen to your statement keenly, point out corrections and suggest a way out’. It nowhere makes an influential person an astronomer.  

What makes me to keep on embellishing words here isn’t my anger or savage.  Though an adverse observation, which previously used to be a sheer motivation. I’m still unable to differentiate between two narratives of the same speaker. First, is he the one, who motivates you to learn more and achieve more? Second, is he a contrary of the first, who’d unleash anger on his addressees? ‘You expose yourself, whenever you speak’, does seem to be a logical procedure to him. What if I apply this touchstone to his speech in that session? Unfortunately, I’m afraid to get an indecisive result.

People present in that gathering weren’t experts on the subject of his discussion. But, learners to note and question. Proving them wrong didn’t require any skill. They couldn’t fit in parameters of the speaker. I do acknowledge they were ignorant on Article 35A. But, then, in his many decades long career, where lies his contribution? To this I’m reminded of a saying, “An offshore person’s obliviousness will not cause any damage to aquatic life, but an in shore’s, certainly will”. Yes. The infield advocates should realize this shame, at par, than those, who are yet to foot-in. ‘State has hired ‘outside counsel’ to defend Article 35A’, is not an infamy for me, but for one who’s termed as a living legend of Kashmir. Since, it’s he who said, “One generation cannot compete with other”.

‘Stop. Don’t say anything. You don’t know. You’ll damage our next generation’. These are some expressions which he unwarranted to censure people, who’d speak. Owing to this, I wonder, if he’s the same personality I’m aware of. How he can disapprove of something and wouldn’t say what lies beneath. He ought not to be so. People approve of him. I’m baffled, if it was his aura of teaching. For no teacher creates an atmosphere to show off his monopoly over something. Instead, he encourages to plug the gaps, and doesn’t not discourage. I observed the pale red demoralized faces of present students. Whether it was a girl or boy, they wouldn’t speak on account of dejection. For they saw, one who speaks has to lose badly.

Whether or not I should have attended that session. Nevertheless, it caste a shadow on his impression on me. My perception for him may not be absolute. But, I’m sure no expert ever tries to win o’er. He always creates a pleasing environment. He responds every question, very politely, may it come from a boy or girl. I believe that everyone is ambitious in his/her life. No one would want to be addressed in a way that he develops negative vibes in converse. Yes…, if such is the case, I must say ‘No’ to these kind of ‘Experts’ and ‘Sermons’.