Every human being has a vision and a mission on earth
Two
unusual emails struck me recently, one was written in lighter vein and
the other in all seriousness. The one on the subject of ‘More on
Management’ read: “Change can’t be given to you every time, you must
bring the change!” ...........Scrolling seriously down to find the
answer, it read, “Albert Silva, Bus Conductor, Route 154, Dematagoda,
Kiribathgoda, Colombo 9. In contrast, the second mail was from my friend
Shamila all the way from the Middle East who wanted me to mull over on a
subject which is more controversial and even surprising - emerging from
a female!
She wrote: “Not only the best cooks are men but they are the most
beautiful of God’s creations. Just think about for a second, the women
who may think they are the most beautiful of all creations are certainly
not.”
Being a woman herself, she claims that women need to make up to look
beautiful, and questions: “If they are deemed to be the loveliest and
beautiful, why do they need to be done up at all, at every occasion? But
look at the man, Oh! He is simply gorgeous without any art done on him
even at 50, 60 or come 80! So in my view, the male gender with their
natural beauty is the most handsome, gorgeous and the best of all God’s
creations. Do you agree? Why don’t you write on this in your In Focus
Column?”
Male chauvinist
Undoubtedly she has thrown me into the deep end in a societal subject
which can easily brand me as a male chauvinist. However, I did some
research to make some sense out of her request.
Wikipedia describes gender roles as ‘social and behaviourial norms
collectively appropriate for individuals of a specific sex in the
context of a specific culture’.
Although gender-based relationships that differentiate have undergone
profound changes over the years, there are still considerable
modifications in gender roles in almost all societies. It is also true
that in times of inevitability, such as during a war or other emergency
situations, women were permitted to perform functions which in ‘normal’
circumstances would be considered as male roles.
Gender expression only refers to the external manifestation of one’s
sexual category and identity, through ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ labels.
Looking back well into the pre-historic culture, men were often, if
not exclusively, responsible for hunting wild animals, the building of
permanent lodgings, protecting villages and other tasks where the male
physique and strong spatial-cognition were most useful.
Seemingly over the years, the scene has changed with factory managers
fast vanishing as more women joined their ranks as a kick-start. The
switch to computers and high technology have managed to take the muscle
out of jobs and attracted more women to replace men.
Women politicians
In modern times there have been many women politicians, Presidents
and Prime Ministers. Today there are two monarchs, Queen Elizabeth II UK
and Queen Beatrix Wilhelmina Armagard in Netherlands as living examples.
A combination of economic changes and the pressure from the feminist
movement in recent decades have exerted anxiety on men in some societies
to compete with women for senior executive jobs, director roles and
chairperson’s positions, the type of jobs once traditionally women were
excluded from.
Some positions and titles, however, are reserved for men only. The
position of Pope in the Roman Catholic Church, for example, is reserved
only for men, as it is priesthood.
Humans exhibit sexual dimorphism. Many of these characteristics do
have a role in sexual attraction. So, without engaging in an argument
over superiority or beauty between men and women, one has to accept the
fact that each one becomes a link in a human chain on earth with a
vision and a mission individually.
Women alone can’t be labelled as beauty conscious who are compelled
to spend extra money and time on manicure and pedicure errands, visiting
beauty parlours for regular haircuts, highlights, facials, eye brows and
spend a fortune on a variety of hand, night, and anti-wrinkle creams
plus expensive perfumes to make them sensational.
Hollywood male actors and sophisticated men in big Western cities in
Germany, London, Paris, Rome, Los Angeles and New York are not an
exception, who spend anything on regular keep-fit operations manicure
and pedicure exercises, wax treatment (for removal of chest hair),
liposuction to get rid of abdominal celluloid and become extravagant in
using designer wigs (hair pieces) to cover their boiled-egg type skulls,
cosmetic surgery and author-dentistry etc.
Looking at from a sexual characteristic perspective, boys become men
with more hair all over their body, larger hands and feet than women,
broad shoulders and chest, larger skull and bone structure, greater
muscle mass, a more prominent Adam’s apple, deeper voice and a long
shinbone. Apart from this gender-neutral behaviour, clothing, hairstyles
or body characteristics too become apparent.
Karmic effect
What was impossible once has become a reality today. If one feels
that one is born to the wrong sex there is no need to worry thinking
about your past Karmic effect because the destiny of such individuals
are now in the hands of high technology and the clinical technician, who
has taken over the responsibility of ‘creator on earth’, from the time
one makes one’s mind up.
In an ever changing cycle, nature too has transformed, nations have
changed, ethics, morals and people’s thinking too have drastically
altered, the latest being an option becoming available for women to
become men and vice versa through ‘ gender blender’ operations. In 1995,
Charring Cross Hospital in West London set up a ‘Gender Identity Clinic’
with an extensive programme for people who felt they were born to the
wrong sex and many have undergone the operation under the National
Health Service to become either men or women.
More on ‘men want to be women’ in a separate column!
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