A biography is about human life – tracing the human life by going beyond the appearances and daily veils to bring to the surface principles that had driven an individual. I come from the premise that a biography should be about human development and progress. A biography therefore should serve as guideposts, making us understand ourselves – it should study a life and show the characteristics of that life. Life is not accident. Everything is predestinated – our walk here on earth is guided by invisible forces.
The biographer there in studying sources and talking with people to getting to know more about his or her subject should in the final analysis develop perspectives. Unfortunately most biographers represent their subject as a lifeless – shoving facts, events, careers stages, businesses and affairs of their life without providing perspectives. In this case the biographer is simply a tabular rasa (Latin meaning clean slate). The tabular rasa biographer dishes out facts without first feeling their energy in his or her bosom. There is no perspective or meditative study of the facts and events. If there is any it is about biases – thus further go further in the wrong direction. The biographer should lay aside all prejudice and party zeal and through virgin mind explore issues and place them in human contexts.
