Monday, September 24, 2007

Gathering my thoughts..

Im overwhelmed with the response ive received for my earlier writing and that is also the reason why i write again.

Ive got something to share.

One of the comments that ive received is that the main issue is not about life getting more n more complex but about
1) setting ones priorities right in life, and that
2) people find fault with the current system of expectations when they r unable to perform, therefore take recourse to faultfinding with the current system.

I see an inherent paradox here!!

U set ur priorities right in life but becoz ur priorites in life may diffr from those of ur parents, family, friends, spouse, peers etc.., u may end up feeling the so called social pressure. now this pressure may or may not lead to dissatisfaction and frustration depending upon how strong the person is internally n emotionally.
Not all people are equally strong emotionally or internally coz all r not genetically the same. Some may successfully dismiss the social expectation as needless n irrelevant while others may succumb to it.When we talk of society, we never talk of those only that have actually been able to make it big in life or r emotionally very strong to fight all odds.
I feel setting ones priorities make sense wen one is able to lead a life that he/she intends to, wihtout getting subjected to the pressures of the surroundings. Now the validity of this very hypothesis that people can make an unbiased and un-influenced choice is itself under doubt bcoz man is bilogically a social being n he cannot alienate himself completely.He will live with people around n so the direct or indirect pressures will hv their own good or bad impacts.
And since one may not b able to make an independent choice, so one may eventually endup blaming the system for his failures too. Thats my opinion.
The answer perhaps lies in rising above these material levels and b able to see the greater picture or sense the greater design that governs life, to be able to disassociate oneself from this material chase, and thats nothing but self actualization.
Easily said than done.!!??!! :)

Its true that these things may hv always existed but is there anything that we can do to make life bettr fr the generations to come??

Just see the little kids around- at the age of 3, they rush to schools with loads on their shoulders. Is that a choice that thye hav made? Even before they grow big enuf to decide for themselves, society has done its part of initial damage to a sapling which would otherwise chart a creative growth perhaps. Schooltime is no different with parents trying to presur their kids into performance. and this series of pressures n influences continues well into ones life as if its an accepted necessary evil.


If u drill the issue deeper, ull find that technology is only one of the outcomes of somethin mankind has always strived for n thats progress. but the real choice that we need to make is what kind of progress we want? do we want progress that makes us more n more machine like or do we want the kind of progress our ancestors made but in a different way. they could master the body's inner strenghts- they could communcate across distances (telepathy), they had the best of medications which we still do nt hav or r still trying to decipher, their immune systems wer far stronger, they cud do astronomy n all without the complex gadgets we possess.. The still existing remnants of Adam's Bridge is proof of the high levels of technology they had achieved.


Science is important but the direction is equllly important. Shud science help us in becoming stronger by making us self -reliant and self-dependent or shud science help us in becoming more and more dependent on this material world. Well our present day science has also done wonders and the intent is nt to disregard those contributions.. but just wanted to induce this thought.. its afterall a choice tht we as a society have collectively made.


Wen i talk of complexities, i never actually mean to dismiss the positive side of technology, but what irks me is the vicious loop that society is unknowingly or knowingly but helplessly getting into. Our parents had a merrier childhood than what we had and We had a merrier one than our children will have...We cannot give our children the carefree existence that we or our parents had. Sadly we have no choice but to let our children face this harsh reality. ...
After all we as a society have decided to tread this path.

Simple, yet so complex!!!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Respect !

Some counter views:)...on Choice.

Yes, everyone is not mature enough to shirk peer / other pressures, and choose the calling of one's heart. But in fact, my opinion is our generation knows that there is something called a calling, and we can decide if we allow ourselves to.

I feel in our earlier generations, the choice for expression itself was relatively lesser.

1) We find new and innovative careers which were not available earlier. If you take a creative career itself, - say music for e.g. probably earlier we had music direction, playback, performance etc. But now, we have wider creative choices - music engineering, animation, and many such new fields have been born -yes - as result of technology, but also there is a market for the specific calling of your heart. Yes, more choices means more confusion ;) But that in a way celebrates the individual spirit - an acknowledgement that you are capable of making your choice. Youth today are more in control of their lives in deciding their future primarily because of access to superior knowledge not available hitherto. But whether that "choice" is itself made from careful thinking, and an analysis of one's abilities - is a point to ponder.

2) There is an ever increasing number of "young artists" in all fields - which would surely not be possible if choices had been restricted to non-creative fields. The increasing number of young entrepreneurs, wider choice of education streams, more social acceptance if one wants to do "different" things ie. the removal of social stigma associated with "thinking different" - I see these as positive outcomes...yes...a move towards self actualisation indeed.

I do agree wit ur earlier post- its not a paradox. Progress has its positives and negatives.

I think the challenge actually is in good & responsible parenting. Giving the freedom of choice to the child is in itself a choice that parents have to exercise - many have infact.

There is something more....on the inherent indomitable quality of the human spirit...watever be the times u r in...which i d rather write later and not spam ur blog;)

mechy said...

Jagdish,

an excellent pour-out right from your heart...I for one, after knowing you for now almost 8 yrs have not an iota of doubt that you really mean this...

but you too will know that personally I dont agree to some pts ....especially..the kids with bag-loads part...

Buddy,

I feel that rather terming their early exposure to academic rigor as a societal pressure, we can say that they are being prepared to take on the most dynamic,whimsical -you dont know what might happen next moment - phenomenon called as "life"

A point is made that if these little kids wouldnt have been put to these "hardships", they might have chartered a path of creative growth....true, its possible. But theres an equal probability that the same kid would have lost, having missed the opportunity to arm himself with enough knowledge, in this world, where law of survival of fittest runs...

Sounds pessimistic right...I'll say rational...coz we have to accept that today theres no heaven or so called Ram Rajya on our planet earth.

Parents dont pressure their kids to perform (may not be true in some cases..but then i dont know how can they be termed as Mom-and-Dad..better put them as guardians)...I feel that they push their kids, coz they know that they wont be there always to look after their back.

Still I fully back the point that theres an overdose of competition today in the world and its now taking a toll on human beings regardless of age. Reason I see is basically the widening gap between available resources and needy mouths (looks like MBA lingo :) ), but it isnt gonna get better.

In the end, Maslow also said that first you need to fullfill the bottom end of need pyramid , your basic needs for Roti Kapda and Makaan...then pursue for "Self Actualization"...and hence as you climb up the pyramid, you enjoy the challenges of each stage in life. I for one dont believe that if I achieve Nirvana frm day one then I will be happier than going through the toils of life.

cheers
Ankur (dont blog so dont have a id..)

mechy said...

Jagdish,

an excellent pour-out right from your heart...I for one, after knowing you for now almost 8 yrs have not an iota of doubt that you really mean this...

but you too will know that personally I dont agree to some pts ....especially..the kids with bag-loads part...

Buddy,

I feel that rather terming their early exposure to academic rigor as a societal pressure, we can say that they are being prepared to take on the most dynamic,whimsical -you dont know what might happen next moment - phenomenon called as "life"

A point is made that if these little kids wouldnt have been put to these "hardships", they might have chartered a path of creative growth....true, its possible. But theres an equal probability that the same kid would have lost, having missed the opportunity to arm himself with enough knowledge, in this world, where law of survival of fittest runs...

Sounds pessimistic right...I'll say rational...coz we have to accept that today theres no heaven or so called Ram Rajya on our planet earth.

Parents dont pressure their kids to perform (may not be true in some cases..but then i dont know how can they be termed as Mom-and-Dad..better put them as guardians)...I feel that they push their kids, coz they know that they wont be there always to look after their back.

Still I fully back the point that theres an overdose of competition today in the world and its now taking a toll on human beings regardless of age. Reason I see is basically the widening gap between available resources and needy mouths (looks like MBA lingo :) ), but it isnt gonna get better.

In the end, Maslow also said that first you need to fullfill the bottom end of need pyramid , your basic needs for Roti Kapda and Makaan...then pursue for "Self Actualization"...and hence as you climb up the pyramid, you enjoy the challenges of each stage in life. I for one dont believe that if I achieve Nirvana frm day one then I will be happier than going through the toils of life.

shekhar prasad said...

jags!!!

good platform 4 view sharing!!!

i personally feel tht the techonological changes hv really created ample oppotunities n options 4 younger people to choose frm varied disciplines n subjects.
Now,they don't hv to confine their thinking in one direction as our ancestors did...
u can easily make out tht a 6-yr child of today is much more intelligent n smart than child was a decade ago.
Society has evolved a lot n for good believe me!!!
but we all hv forgot the basic thing tht is still valid now!!! i feel
now u hv to be really smart to assess in short span of time to go 4 sumthing i mean selection
not to be lost in the market of varied options..
first to make urself solid in place then comes the world...

now take time to relax
learn all the knowledge tht our ancestors had n retain those tht r valid 2day...

wanna right more but feeling sleepy
choice made

now!!

:)

wait for 80% more only 20% done

not to be taken 20-80 law ;)