The Nature of Nature

Having finished chowing down on the exciting action-adventure novel ARK FOUND: An Omega Files Adventure (Book 2) by Rick Chesler, I feel it's time I wrote this article before setting off for my next read by the same author: Luna. I hope the seemingly redundant use of the word "nature" doesn't discourage you from resuming your perusal (I can assure you the title is carefully thought-out).

Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash

What stimulated me to write this post is something along the lines of people vociferously complaining  about the existence of a video on social media showing the gory depiction of an animal killing and/or eating another animal of a different type. Think about lions hunting a zebra, for instance. (If you'd like to go back much further in time, imagine a Tyrannosaurus assailing a Triceratops in Late Cretaceous North America.) Such things are natural phenomena, and vehemently resenting and detesting them would naturally prompt me to raise my eyebrows.

I understand that such macabre events can make some (or many) flinch, but that's the harsh reality of nature. That's the nature of nature. Lions are predators and carnivores (their dental apparatus is not "designed" for ingesting vegetation) and without consuming flesh, they would simply vanish into thin air. They have evolved this way, and it is not their fault that they have to kill other animals in order to survive. Taking sides is a mind-bending thing to do and can lead to cognitive dissonance. Nevertheless, it seems that nowadays many people are drawn to this sort of behavior and continue engaging in mental masturbation – X is an extremely cute animal! Nobody and nothing should ever hurt it! The more videos of X thriving on social media I see, the more ecstatic I am!

An implication of the nature of nature pertains to morality. I have changed my mind on more than one thing in my life and this is one example of those. I used to firmly believe in absolute morality, but the nature of nature has simply crushed this way of thinking. Let's take birds and worms, for example. Is it morally right to catch worms and feed them to birds? Well, from birds' point of view, definitely yes, as it will give them the nutrients they need, but it's certainly a huge no from worms' standpoint, as it will contribute to their demise. Talking of this matter, Dr. Henry Wu's quote in Jurassic World has had a deep impact on me: "Monster is a relative term. To a canary, a cat is a monster. We're just used to being the cat."

Then, a question naturally arises: How should we live our lives? I think the best approach to answering this question is shown by the following quote from Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a.k.a. Osho: "You should care only about one thing, that you are happy, that you are blissful, that you are silent, that you are at ease with existence."

Related article: Animal Abuse

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Quote #120

"Simply staying alive may be a monumental achievement far too often overlooked." - Klinsman Hinjaya

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Quote #119

"Genuine humility is a prerequisite for fully embracing evolution." - Klinsman Hinjaya

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English-Indonesian False Friends

Taking a short break from perusing the grandificently written novel Hotel Megalodon by Rick Chesler, I am here nestled on my bed writing this English-themed article. Some (or many?) friends are not real; those backstabbers or wolves in sheep's clothing should be eschewed, hurled into oblivion in a split second. Nevertheless, this is not the sense this article intends to discuss.

In linguistic terminology, a false friend is "a word in a foreign language that is similar to one in your own, so that you wrongly think they both mean the same thing" (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online). It is obvious that false friends can impede a language learner's progress, misleading them into an incorrect understanding of a word. Hence, I hope the following list of English-Indonesian false friends can help English-learning Indonesian speakers and Indonesian-learning English speakers alike to avoid such a misunderstanding potentially caused by these "masquerading foes". Enjoy!

Note:

• In each entry, the first word is English and the second word Indonesian.
• The entries are arranged in alphabetical order.
• The definition of the English word is from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online, unless stated otherwise.
• If you would like to suggest your own false friends, feel free to contact me. I will credit you for your contribution(s).

1. air vs. air (added on October 10, 2024)
• air: the mixture of gases around the Earth, that we breathe
• air: water
2. Angus vs. (h)angus (added on October 6, 2024)
• Angus: any of a breed of usually black hornless beef cattle originating in Scotland (Merriam-Webster)
• (h)angus: burnt
3. babe vs. babe (added on October 10, 2024)
• babe: a word for an attractive young woman; a way of speaking to someone you love, especially your wife or husband
• babe: father; dad
4. baggage vs. bagasi (added on October 19, 2024)
• baggage: the cases, bags, boxes etc. carried by someone who is traveling
• bagasi: the part at the back of a car where you can put bags, tools etc.; trunk [US]/boot [UK]
• Note that the word "bagasi" can also refer to the English meaning above.
5. ballyhoo vs. baliho
• ballyhoo: when there is a lot of excitement or anger about something – used to show disapproval
• baliho: a promotional medium that gives information about an activity related to a society (Kumparan)
• Note that the word "baliho" can also refer to the English meaning above.
6. bandan(n)a vs. bando
• bandan(n)a: a large brightly colo(u)red piece of cloth that you wear around your head or neck
• bando: headband
7. benzene vs. bensin
• benzene: a liquid obtained from coal, used for making plastics
• bensin: gasoline [US]/petrol [UK]
8. bow tie vs. bau ta(h)i
• bow tie: a short piece of cloth tied in the shape of a bow that men sometimes wear around their neck
• bau ta(h)i: the smell of f(a)eces
9. bullet vs. bulat
• bullet: a small piece of metal that you fire from a gun
• bulat: round(ed)
10. center [US]/centre [UK] vs. senter
• center [US]/centre [UK]: the middle of a space, area, or object, especially the exact middle; a building which is used for a particular purpose or activity
• senter: flashlight [US]/torch [UK]
11. colo(u)r vs. kolor
• colo(u)r: red, blue, yellow, green, brown, purple etc.
• kolor: briefs; underpants [US]/pants [UK]
12. copy vs. kopi (added on November 1, 2024)
• copy: something that is made to be exactly like another thing
• kopi: coffee
• Note that the word "kopi" can also refer to the English meaning above.
13. cost vs. kos(t)
• cost: the amount of money that you have to pay in order to buy, do, or produce something
• kos(t): boarding house; bedsit [UK]
14. critic vs. kritik
• critic: someone whose job is to make judgments about the good and bad qualities of art, music, films etc.; someone who criticizes a person, organization, or idea
• kritik: criticism
15. dozen vs. dosen
• dozen: twelve
• dosen: lecturer
16. espionage vs. spion
• espionage: the activity of secretly finding out secret information and giving it to a country’s enemies or a company’s competitors 
• spion: side mirror [US]/wing mirror [UK]
17. fabric vs. pabrik
• fabric: cloth used for making clothes, curtains etc.
• pabrik: factory
18. grocer vs. grosir
• grocer: someone who owns or works in a shop that sells food and other things used in the home
• grosir: wholesale(r)
19. groggy vs. grogi
• groggy: weak and unable to move well or think clearly because you are ill or very tired
• grogi: nervous; have butterflies (in your stomach)
20. guru vs. guru
• guru: someone who knows a lot about a particular subject, and gives advice to other people; a Hindu religious teacher or leader
• guru: teacher
21. hide vs. haid
• hide: to deliberately put or keep something or someone in a place where they cannot easily be seen or found; to go or stay in a place where no one will see or find you
• haid: menstruation
22. ketchup vs. kecap
• ketchup: a thick cold red sauce made from tomatoes that you put on food
• kecap: soy sauce
23. khaki vs. kaki
• khaki: a dull green-brown or yellow-brown colo(u)r; cloth of this colo(u)r, especially when worn by soldiers
• kaki: foot; leg
24. modal vs. modal (added on October 6, 2024)
• modal: a verb, such as "can", "might", and "must", that is used with another verb to express an idea such as possibility that is not expressed by the main verb of a sentence (Cambridge Dictionary)
• modal: capital; money or property, especially when it is used to start a business or to produce more wealth
25. optical vs. optik
• optical: relating to machines or processes which are concerned with light, images, or the way we see things
• optik: optometrist's [US]/optician's [UK]
• Note that the word "optik" can also refer to the English meaning above.
26. ounce vs. ons
• ounce: a unit for measuring weight, equal to 28.35 grams. There are 16 ounces in a pound.
• ons: a unit for measuring weight, equal to 100 grams
27. police vs. polis (added on October 18, 2024)
• police: the people who work for an official organization whose job is to catch criminals and make sure that people obey the law
• polis: policy; a contract with an insurance company, or an official written statement giving all the details of such a contract
28. policy vs. polisi (added on October 18, 2024)
• policy: a way of doing something that has been officially agreed and chosen by a political party, a business, or another organization; a contract with an insurance company, or an official written statement giving all the details of such a contract
• polisi: police
29. prawn vs. perawan
• prawn: a small pink shellfish that can be eaten
• perawan: virgin
30. pulse vs. pulsa
• pulse: the regular beat that can be felt, for example at your wrist, as your heart pumps blood around your body
• pulsa: cell phone credit [US]/mobile phone credit [UK]
31. room vs. rumah
• room: a part of the inside of a building that has its own walls, floor, and ceiling
• rumah: house; home
32. solar vs. solar (added on October 19, 2024)
• solar: relating to the sun; using the power of the sun’s light and heat
• solar: a type of heavy oil used instead of petrol in engines, especially in trucks, buses, and trains; diesel (fuel/oil)
33. sinister vs. sinis
• sinister: making you feel that something evil, dangerous, or illegal is happening or will happen
• sinis: cynical
34. vocal vs. vokal
• vocal: expressing strong opinions publicly, especially about things that you disagree with; relating to the voice or to singing
• vokal: vowel
• Note that the word "vokal" can also refer to the English meanings above.

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Quote #118

"The attainment of peace of mind involves resigning yourself to everyday misfortunes and inconveniences." - Klinsman Hinjaya

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Quote #117

"The universe is an exhaustible source of mind-stimulating materials, ever-ready to be probed and, hopefully, grokked by the willing." - Klinsman Hinjaya

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It's Not the End of the World

The title of this article is a cool-sounding English idiom that is used to assure someone that a "problem is not as bad as they think" (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online). This expression is efficacious at executing its task because it 'intelligently' compares one's predicament with the worst possible of all: Doomsday. The fact that this can be found in major dictionaries is a testament to its effectiveness as a lexical item. Nonetheless, something in it has tickled my philosophical mind.

What if it IS the end of the world? Imagine the earth is on the verge of being pummeled by an asteroid vastly larger than the one wiping out non-avian dinosaurs. Or some sort of zombie apocalypse being underway, slowly but surely exterminating our very own species, Homo sapiens. These are highly hypothetical, but scientifically speaking, we are on a trajectory toward the inevitable demise that is patiently awaiting us far, far away temporally. Facing such a potentially petrifying reality, what should we do? I turn to Stoicism for the answer.

The ancient philosophy provides us with a potent tool for achieving a sense of inner peace: amor fati. This Latin expression translates as 'a love of fate', which is self-explanatory. This Stoic practice teaches us to love whatever happens, getting rid of the mental resistance that is only holding us back in life. Sh*t happens (and coprolites happened): this is the reality of life. We need to wholeheartedly embrace our fate, accepting that it is the best that could have happened and harboring no regrets whatsoever. Stoic philosopher Epictetus encapsulates amor fati brilliantly: “Do not seek for things to happen the way you want them to; rather, wish that what happens happen the way it happens: then you will be happy.“ Practicing amor fati makes it possible for you to experience the fullness of happiness and ataraxia.

Ergo, whether it is the end of the world or not the end of the world doesn't matter. Let's just devote our time, energy, and attention to the present moment, making the most of we currently have with love, passion, and gratitude. I would like to end this article with a profoundly mindset-changing quote on death from the doyen of science communication, Richard Dawkins:

We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones. Most people are never going to die because they are never going to be born. The potential people who could have been here in my place but who will in fact never see the light of day outnumber the sand grains of Arabia. Certainly those unborn ghosts include greater poets than Keats, scientists greater than Newton. We know this because the set of possible people allowed by our DNA so massively exceeds the set of actual people. In the teeth of these stupefying odds it is you and I, in our ordinariness, that are here. We privileged few, who won the lottery of birth against all odds, how dare we whine at our inevitable return to that prior state from which the vast majority have never stirred?

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