SAGE AND SENSIBILITY

History has seen some famous people change course. We present a few
Attilio Ariosti |16661729| This Italian composer was born in Bologna and produced more than 30 operas and oratorios, numerous cantatas and instrumental works. He became a monk at 22, but soon left the order and become a composer in the court of the Duke of Mantua and Monferrato. He wrote a number of stage works for the court in Berlin. His first opera was performed in Venice in 1697. Lou Tseng-Tsiang |1871-1949| He was a Chinese diplomat and a Roman Catholic monk. He was twice premier of the Republic of China and led his countrys delegation at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. He retired from active life after the death of his wife, and in 1927, became a postulant in a Benedictine monastery in Belgium. He was ordained priest in 1935. In August 1946, Pope Pius XII appointed him titular abbot of the Abbey of St Peter in Ghent.

Ralph Waldo Emerson |18031882| This American essayist, lecturer and poet led the Transcendentalist Movement. Seen as a champion of individualism, he disseminated his thoughts through many essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the US. He formulated the philosophy of Transcendentalism in his 1836 essay, Nature. His writing style was somewhat impenetrable, but influenced many thinkers who followed him.

Henry David Thoreau |18171862| This American author and philosopher was a leading transcendentalist too. Hes best known for his book Walden, a reflection about simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Civil Disobedience. His books, articles and poetry cover over 20 volumes. His philosophy of civil disobedience influenced the political thoughts of figures such as Leo Tolstoy, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Sri Aurobindo |18721950| He was a freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru, and poet. After attending the Surat session of the Congress in 1907, Aurobindo met a Maharashtrian yogi Vishnu Bhaskar Lele in Baroda. It led him to retire for three days in seclusion where he had his first mystical experience, followed by many others. His works include translations and commentaries of the Vedas, Upanishads, and the Gita.