soundarya bhaavanaa-aesthetic emotions

Many sensations, memories, concepts, thoughts keep on giving messages to the brain through the context surrounding the individual. The messages arising out of the brain are accompanied with the sensations coming through the body. The brain categorizes this grouping of messages. If we consider this activity of the brain, it is evident that the brain can categorize these messages into three categories. 1. Psychological, 2. Logical and 3. Soundaryatmak (aesthetic). E g . when one sees a tiger, he will remember a circus, from that a clown, from that he will imagine things about the life of the clown; then he will think of human life as a clown on the life stage. The streams within the Conscious-unconscious soudnya Shakti may look unconnected, chaotic. But there is a thread within. This is psychological ordering. From there, ‘the tiger is a fierce animal and one should run away before the tiger catches and kills’ –is a logical order. And lastly, the tiger’s yellow colour, the complementing black stripes on it, the curves of the back and the tail, how the balance each other… this is Soundaryatmak sangati (aesthetic order).
The order in which messages come to the brain from the context is the psychological order. When the messages and their meanings are arranged in ordered so that there is no contradiction left it becomes logical order. And then the ‘Indriyasavedanaatmak’ (sensory) messages arranged according to their ‘Gunanurodh’ (merit) and other messages arranged according to the ‘arthaanurodh’(meaning) in just the complementary and contradictory groups then it is the soundarya Shaastriya Sangati (aesthetic order).
What ‘I’ want my role to be in the process? The same question is relevant for me when I am working on designs for the destitute like the Bhopal gas victims. The event may be a traumatic experience for some… but should I be ashamed of looking at the dead and distorted through a soundarya bhaavana (aesthetic emotion)? Right balance of looking at things through all the three perspectives is a good approach, but even if we want to express ourselves only through soundarya bhaavana (aesthetic emotion), honestly of course, then it has to be our freedom. I think Le Corbusier, when he designed his cities, or rather his Capitol for Chandigarh was concerned only with this approach. And I see no reason to blame him. From other perspectives, psychological or logical…it will be a wrong preposition.
So from an artist’s perspective, killing may look beautiful…. No action or individual can be termed wrong….
The biological aims are just two, ‘survival’ and ‘reproduction’, the basic instincts. If the importance of an emotion is just biological, then it’s link with the truth of the situation is vital. Because internal-external physical response is focused in providing energy for changing the situation. And the situation can not be changed unless the truth of the situation is understood. The emotion can be based on a false knowledge of the situation, but when the truth is revealed the emotion and the physical response will disappear. The knowledge of truth is not just based on the merits and interrelation of the sensations coming of the situation. The sensations, merits and relations are just flag posts. The truth-knowledge is based on the ‘meaning’ they provide. So the ‘meaning’ may remain the same even if relations and merits of the sensations are changed. If that happens, the emotion based on the truth-knowledge of the situation will change or diminish. But the Soundarya bhaavanaa (aesthetic emotion) based on the same emotions and their qualities will not change, because the soundarya bhaavana is not supposed to provide energy to change the situation for helping the ultimate goals of survival and reproduction (Vanvsha Vardhan). If we keep a model of a tiger in a jungle, a spectator will be frightened on the first sight. But if he comprehends that its just a model, the sensations and their relations coming from the situation even though the same, will project a new meaning and so there remains no fright. But the soundarya bhaavana based on the sensations and their relations remains the same.
In other words, RagaDveshaadi (rage, jealousy etc.) Soundaryetar bhaavana (other than aesthetic emotions) will be based on the statements regarding the situation, and the soundarya bhaavanaa is based on the construct of the situation. The existence of Yataartha (correct) knowledge of the situation will not alter the soundarya bhaavanaa so it will not help in the ultimate goals of survival and reproduction. “
What’s the role of we designers in this context? Can we address both these concerns… for the users and for ourselves? Will continue…