Why do we play Golf?
I suppose this is a sequel to my: How I play Golf!
The obvious question ‘Why do we play Golf?’ is easily answered if we look at the broader picture. The professionals make a living and some do fabulously well. It generates billions of dollars in business all across the world. It is a game that can be played by people of all ages, sizes, shape and orientation!
Some serious golfers make a claim that golf is like life itself, sometimes even larger than life. While the first claim is probably true, I thought a web search (presently as important as a Vedic sanction of the old!) would be more informative! Results of the search gave about 553,000,000 sites for golf in 0.35 seconds, about 1,350,000,000 for love in 0.16 seconds and about 2,660,000,000 for life in 0.18 seconds. While Golf taking the third place would be disappointing for many of us, the young at heart would be relieved that love still prevails over golf!
I have been asking myself “Why do I play Golf?” especially after a rough day on the course! I suppose it starts as a way of killing time for a retiree like me! For us South Indian Brahmins the earlier ploy after retirement was to latch on to religion, get busy with an elaborate morning pooja! No one dared to tell them to go out and buy vegetables, collect people from rail stations! I fail to understand why spending time on golf, especially watching it on TV, is unfairly viewed with derision and as a waste of time while 3 hours in the pooja room is venerated! It is strange that while muttering the same mantra for hours every day is ennobling, the same time spent on golf is not! I am not the one to be easily discouraged and view Golf as a pilgrimage, a Badriyatra! In the past it was a journey with a possibility of being the final one. Golfers who are hooked will understand this.
(Those lucky ones, who do not retire and take up consultancy, join politics, own business and so on, can stop reading now!)
Living in Bangkok limited my options of keeping busy. You try to read books on religion, philosophy and after a while get totally confused. If you are scientifically inclined you can marvel at the Hubble pictures and get confused even more. It was impossible for me to grasp the enormity and complexity of the visible universe, let alone the spiritual world and gave up. I did try to get involved in the world’s problem by watching BBC and CNN, but how much can one see the perennial stories of conflict. Considered various activities TM, AOL, Aura, Reiki, Sahaj Yoga and did try a few of them, with various degrees of involvement!
Then it was almost like an ashariravani guided me to walk to the palace grounds in Bangalore and the driving range! In no time I was talking to a coach and fixing up lessons! It looked pretty easy for a guy who played sports!
I now realize that playing golf is the closest to what most of our elders did after retirement! Golfers also get up early in the morning, do surya namaskara, take a bath (shower!) before going to the course (temple)! As we near the course one can see many carts displaying golf balls reminiscent of the shops near a temple! We do buy used (‘experienced’ for the Americans!) balls and offer it to the golf gods. Depending on the course we give up half of them and bring back the rest as Prasad. Tiger Woods thinks it is Nirvana when he hits a pure golfing shot, we think it is swarga( Heaven!) especially in Bangalore when we stop after nine holes for a breakfast of Masala dosa and Coffee!
Golfers have their own rituals as deep in meaning as any pooja, they also have strict dress codes. They also practice a specially designed caste system (Handicaps!). It is possible that you may discover, if you dig deep enough, some mention of golf in the Vedas! May be not, our rishis would not have devised a game with so many clubs for putting one ball into the hole. I am sure they would have one Astra (Club) and many mantras for Driving, laying up, pitching, chipping and putting! Imagine getting a boon from one of the gods to have hole-in-one in all the 18 holes.
The obvious question ‘Why do we play Golf?’ is easily answered if we look at the broader picture. The professionals make a living and some do fabulously well. It generates billions of dollars in business all across the world. It is a game that can be played by people of all ages, sizes, shape and orientation!
Some serious golfers make a claim that golf is like life itself, sometimes even larger than life. While the first claim is probably true, I thought a web search (presently as important as a Vedic sanction of the old!) would be more informative! Results of the search gave about 553,000,000 sites for golf in 0.35 seconds, about 1,350,000,000 for love in 0.16 seconds and about 2,660,000,000 for life in 0.18 seconds. While Golf taking the third place would be disappointing for many of us, the young at heart would be relieved that love still prevails over golf!
I have been asking myself “Why do I play Golf?” especially after a rough day on the course! I suppose it starts as a way of killing time for a retiree like me! For us South Indian Brahmins the earlier ploy after retirement was to latch on to religion, get busy with an elaborate morning pooja! No one dared to tell them to go out and buy vegetables, collect people from rail stations! I fail to understand why spending time on golf, especially watching it on TV, is unfairly viewed with derision and as a waste of time while 3 hours in the pooja room is venerated! It is strange that while muttering the same mantra for hours every day is ennobling, the same time spent on golf is not! I am not the one to be easily discouraged and view Golf as a pilgrimage, a Badriyatra! In the past it was a journey with a possibility of being the final one. Golfers who are hooked will understand this.
(Those lucky ones, who do not retire and take up consultancy, join politics, own business and so on, can stop reading now!)
Living in Bangkok limited my options of keeping busy. You try to read books on religion, philosophy and after a while get totally confused. If you are scientifically inclined you can marvel at the Hubble pictures and get confused even more. It was impossible for me to grasp the enormity and complexity of the visible universe, let alone the spiritual world and gave up. I did try to get involved in the world’s problem by watching BBC and CNN, but how much can one see the perennial stories of conflict. Considered various activities TM, AOL, Aura, Reiki, Sahaj Yoga and did try a few of them, with various degrees of involvement!
Then it was almost like an ashariravani guided me to walk to the palace grounds in Bangalore and the driving range! In no time I was talking to a coach and fixing up lessons! It looked pretty easy for a guy who played sports!
I now realize that playing golf is the closest to what most of our elders did after retirement! Golfers also get up early in the morning, do surya namaskara, take a bath (shower!) before going to the course (temple)! As we near the course one can see many carts displaying golf balls reminiscent of the shops near a temple! We do buy used (‘experienced’ for the Americans!) balls and offer it to the golf gods. Depending on the course we give up half of them and bring back the rest as Prasad. Tiger Woods thinks it is Nirvana when he hits a pure golfing shot, we think it is swarga( Heaven!) especially in Bangalore when we stop after nine holes for a breakfast of Masala dosa and Coffee!
Golfers have their own rituals as deep in meaning as any pooja, they also have strict dress codes. They also practice a specially designed caste system (Handicaps!). It is possible that you may discover, if you dig deep enough, some mention of golf in the Vedas! May be not, our rishis would not have devised a game with so many clubs for putting one ball into the hole. I am sure they would have one Astra (Club) and many mantras for Driving, laying up, pitching, chipping and putting! Imagine getting a boon from one of the gods to have hole-in-one in all the 18 holes.
Labels: Golf 'Oriental'
posted by Doreswamy Srinidhi at
9:56 PM
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