hidden image

We are Pearls

P. A. Joseph P. A. Joseph
11 Dec 2023

It is an exciting reality to feel that we are all pearls. Pearl is a beautiful thing made or formed in nature. There are many explanations for its formation. It has been discovered that sometimes irritants enter the oyster's body and accumulate, and eventually, a smooth pearl is made/formed. Oysters have a crusty and rough exterior and a flat and oval shape. When an oyster is fully grown, it breaks itself or is broken by the people and the pearls are collected from inside. Pearls are exquisite, sometimes of different colours. They are costly. Some would equate the earth that we live on with an oyster. We are made/formed here on earth. The World is our oyster! 

However, our position is that of the oyster, giving birth to pearls and being the pearl itself. It is like being akin to both the mother and the child simultaneously. It is a beautiful reality to reflect on.

Scientifically speaking, pearls are made of calcium carbonate. The earth’s crust is covered with it. The pearl is formed by continuous friction. This way, we can say that the pearl’s beauty is made from insult. Insults hurt, but here it hurt for betterment. Artificial pearls are manufactured worldwide. The pearls made this way are cheaper but still undergo the same process. 

The pearl must first accumulate more grit and then be ground and polished. It has to undergo this process millions of times before it develops into the final product. 

Similarly, we must accumulate the lessons we receive daily and then be ground and polished through suffering. We must also emulate the qualities of an oyster, sheltering and preparing a place for pearls to grow.

You are in a growing mountain of fortunes! Once, a semi-blind farm labourer was digging his little portion of land. While cutting the hard earth, he was stuck with hard yellow stone; someone had to make him realize that the whole little plot of land was gold! He became a wealthy millionaire!!!

At times, we cannot see the right thing with our perspective. At times like these, we need to see with our minds and hearts, not our eyes. To see mentally is to think, to contemplate. In this way, seeing is lovely as it goes beyond the world of materials. From this perspective, look around; acres of pearls and diamonds may be in your courtyard.

We must remind ourselves daily that our life is an oyster and keep producing and shaping lovely pearls!

Recent Posts

As China powers ahead with trillion-dollar trade surpluses and futuristic innovation, India drifts into culture wars and symbolic debates. Shrinking parliamentary scrutiny and political distraction ar
apicture A. J. Philip
15 Dec 2025
The rapacity for tribal land and violation of tribal autonomy are being masked by the Hindutva forces as a battle for personhood. Adivasi Christians face assaults, expulsions, and judicial indifferenc
apicture John Dayal
15 Dec 2025
The IndiGo meltdown exposes the more profound crises developing in India. We are drifting toward monopoly economics, where regulators just blink, corporations bully, and citizens pay. If essential sec
apicture Jacob Peenikaparambil
15 Dec 2025
India's democratic foundations—rooted in rights, modern education and egalitarian ideals—are being reshaped as Hindutva politics elevates duties over freedoms. Modi's rhetoric signals a shift from con
apicture Ram Puniyani
15 Dec 2025
When a woman leads, we expect her to do wonders and that her presence alone will solve the problems she inherits. At the very least, we expect her to understand women's anxieties, respond with empathy
apicture Jaswant Kaur
15 Dec 2025
In the cold, unforgiving silence of the prison cell, Keshav—once defined by his crime—now holds a driver's license, a key to a new life, and a quiet smile. This subtle yet profound transformation is t
apicture CM Paul
15 Dec 2025
As Hindutva leaders rewrite identity and weaponise myth, minorities remain loyal while being vilified—and lakhs of Hindus themselves flee the stifling culture imposed in their name. A nation built on
apicture Thomas Menamparampil
15 Dec 2025
O Sanatan, the walls of your temple ring with my suffering, Not with words, not with deeds, but with each inch of my flesh that has your stain upon it. I am the Pariah, branded at birth, a curse wri
apicture Dr Suryaraju Mattimalla
15 Dec 2025
This year has shown us that dishonesty walks confidently through the front doors of our institutions. Chanakya's cleverness is praised. Cheating is normalised. Those who take shortcuts are applauded f
apicture Robert Clements
15 Dec 2025
From colonial opium to today's smartphones, India has perfected the art of numbing its youth. While neighbours topple governments through conviction and courage, our fatalism breeds a quietism that su
apicture A. J. Philip
08 Dec 2025