Few days has passed since i read a book about someone, but my mind couldn't just let it go. I must write it. Here. On how this someone could think so unusual, different, and miraculously at his era.

Here's Leonardo da Vinci,

whose famous for his 'Monalisa' painting. We all knew how brilliant his painting are, just take a look at the Monalisa. Today, it might be just some regular art to you, that make your brain wander, 'why this painting is so famous?!' but if you threw yourself to Renaissance era, especially 15th century.. damn, da Vinci is such a genius.

We didn't talk about who the true Monalisa is, or how mysterious the smile is. But what makes it genius, is how he combined art and science in his beautiful work. Ok, so let me explain in a simple way. He used mathematics to measure body and face proportion, geography for the background, and play with the real optic works, oh, don't forget how he paint the shadow so correctly! So that's what happened when a scientist paint.

Ok. So, if we dig deeper, Leonardo da Vinci already did a lot of things. One of the most shocking part is, he is actually an anatomist! Can you believe he drew anatomy (really detailed) of human body, and almost made that Sobotta-like if he finished it? He just simply collaborate together with cadaver and medical student. Can you believe he also drew the map from bird view when there's no camera nor google map at that time? No sophisticated measurement device. Just simply an odometer which he invented himself. How could that be possible, my mind cannot even think of how it works pemirsa.

And not only that, he's actually a technician too. War is still 'on-going' at that time, and he drew a lot about war machine, flying machine, bridge, also wheels, and invented musical instruments! There's a lot works that i don't mentioned here. But one that i can concluded is he learnt a lot and earn so many.

The big question that has come to my mind, how can? How can someone learn so many different subjects at that time and people still believe them?

As i went deeper, I think what happened in Renaissance is almost similar like what happened in Athene.

No one is actually professional in anything.

There's no professional judge, politician, nor artist. Anyone can do anything. Even a soldier writes poetry, and everyone enjoyed their work. No one will tell them "You are an artist, i don't believe you can calculate this machine accurately." Why? Because it's an ordinary thing, there's nothing yang "mengkotak-kotakan" keahlian like nowadays. Everyone can learn anything and there's no gelar that will put after his name.

So, don't be surprised that Leonardo da Vinci can be like that. He learn maths, physics, geography and medicines very deep, and no one will tell him that he cannot do that just because he didn't enter the faculty that focused on that major.

If we put that situation to this time, would you believe if there's someone who never enter faculty of law write a book about laws? Someone talk about medicine and didn't have a background from medicine?

We can call Leonardo da Vinci a genius because his era made him a genius. How about now? Who is the next Leonardo da Vinci? Is it Steve Jobs? or Mark Zuckerberg?

In this era, university became a big gate to categorize our focus, someone smart in math will take math as his major. And what happened if he became so smart in math? Would people call him a prodigy? Not always. Because his focus is math, and its common for people to be smart in what he focused on.

See what i'm trying to say?

Our era just give opportunity to call someone who invent something that give a big impact to our society and learn a lot of money, a genius. Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Jack Ma. Can you even mention someone genius other than them in this era?

I didn't want to say this era is bad and the past is better. But let's compare at what happened with Leonardo da Vinci and our education system today.

Leonardo didn't take a regular school, meanwhile we must complete our 12 years education.

Leonardo learn many subject, we learn many subject too.

Leonardo combine from what he learn to every single thing that he did, meanwhile we didn't.

Our 12 years education before entering university including math, biology, physics, social, economic, etc. is good enough to make us as the next Leonardo da Vinci. But since most people think learn a math while he want to be a doctor is a useless thing, our product is not like Leonardo da Vinci.

We need to stop saying that learn every subject in elementary school, middle school, and high school is useless. Like, what for i learn this pythagoras for? Why i have to measure the speed of a stone that fall from the sky? Why i have to learn this body system when i don't want to be a doctor?

We are far more than good from the past if we really combine that many subject (and of course develop it!) and implement it in our major. Trust me, if you dig deeply, there is always a part of many subject that you already learn that in your focus now.

Like maths, its not all about maths. Like medicine, its not all about biology, it includes physics, maths, geography, social too (i really hope i can say astronomy after this).

And its okay to learn deeply about another subject that didn't become your focus! Trust from people is second, your interest is number one. If you have interest in a subject, then go for it. Learn it, deep. No one will call you genius because genius is a gelar that people give and this kind genius in this era is different. See Tompi? a plastic surgeon that also a singer? People nowadays will call you unique.

Desember, 2019

Kami adalah manusia yang kehilangan arah

berjalan kesana kesini

tak menentu

tau tempat yang dituju

tapi terhalang maju

Kami adalah manusia yang kehilangan arah

agama melembutkan hati kami

buku menjernihkan pikiran kami

Suara kami bergelora

meneriakan ketidakadilan

meneriakan ketidakmanusiawi-an

tapi siapa peduli?

hidup ini begini adanya

Desember, 2019