THE KAESHIK CHARACTERISTIC

The word kaeshik means an external expression of anger, shame, hatred, compassion, love, affection, attraction, repulsion, etc., to an extreme degree. People cry out in their extreme joy; they cannot contain their happiness within the narrow confines of their nerves. And in the case of hatred, even if they do not want to express it openly, neither can they keep it suppressed. People cannot suppress their overflowing emotions of love, affection, compassion, etc., nor keep them under control; they must give vent to their feelings. Later they may regret what they said; they will feel that it was not right to express their innermost feelings. This expression of sentimentality varies from creature to creature, from human to human, from one class to another, and from one sentimental group to another. The general term for this expression of sentimentality is kaeshik. Under the spell of kaeshik, one may commit suicide. People climb the highest mountain summits, sail into the blue void and touch the inaccessible poles, goaded by this kaeshik propensity.

We hear about a marine creature called a mermaid, or matsyakanyá,⁽¹⁾ that lives in some parts of the world. Below the navel it resembles a fish, while on the upper part are flippers; its face resembles a sea lion’s. As it is a mammal, it has teats, in the area above the navel. This creature sometimes rises out of the water for a short time showing its upper body but keeping the lower portion underwater; and then again dives deep into the sea. If one sees from a distance only its upper body and its teats, one may mistake it for a human girl. In fact it is a water mammal like a whale or a sea lion.

It is said that mermaids are remarkable for their extreme sentimentality. I remember many years ago some villagers in eastern Indonesia killed a mermaid. Mermaids do not have the strength or intellectual capacity to fight against humans. Many mermaids (about fifty or sixty) came out of the water and flipped themselves up on the beaches and, because they are water creatures, died as soon as they came ashore. The local people believed that they committed collective suicide to lament in a mute protest against human atrocities because an innocent member of the mermaid community was killed.

The kaeshik propensity is more manifest in women than in men. There is a greater degree of sentimentality in women. Consequently, women can perform extraordinary feats that men cannot. Had these potentialities been harnessed for constructive activities, there would have been many benefits for the world, but as this aspect of women’s psychology is not known, society could not utilize their potential fully.

Footnotes

(1) That is, the dugong. –Trans.