Chapter 6
The Search for a Shortcut
Search for a Shortcut?
Yes, I feel there is room for one. I also think, none of us have tried for it, so far. Reason is rather simple. In fact, irrespective of one’s leaning, whether it is towards the spiritual or the material, all of us go ahead with one’s own life, more or less in the same manner. Since the actual manifestation of the events and occurrences of life, the priorities, or the living style that controls the way we perceive it, vary greatly, we think of the spiritual and the material as vastly different. But the gains both the paths lead to are more or less the same, since the end result is a comfortable life, one without incurable troubles or worries. Hence, depending mainly on one’s broad understanding of life, we can group all people into two. Those leaning towards the material, where life is predominantly a predictable one, and the other that could include the many shades of the spiritual, where it is essentially something beyond our senses.
How Commotion Enters Human Life
In each, the very definition of life changes appropriately to accommodate whatever observances, ceremonies and other imponderable that get added routinely. And commotion is nothing but a result of such imponderables, the real cause of which is the redefinition, and the new entities that get added, or the old ones that get removed, as a result. The type, nature, and depth of all these entities differ, and can take any combination or form, which are nothing but random events or occurrences with contextual relevance. For those oriented to the material, it normally is in the various manifestations of whatever little unpredictable is left, which generally take the shape of abstractions like prestige, honour, style, etc. For others, a wide canvas of impressions and experiences that are dependent on nothing else but how creative, imaginative, or ingenuous, one is, provide unlimited scope. By now, we are all so accustomed to these meaningless (remember, there is no direct link between these and life) activities of life, we accord them the highest status. In short, what we celebrate as the essential and unique elements of human race, and what we time to time figure out as just commotion, are not much different.
The short cut, if found, would release the human race of such a worthless load, and should work for both the groups.
In any case, the current thoughts about having a comfortable life, I think veers around one point. Maintain a healthy society consisting of good individuals.
Which opens up two questions. What is the best society, and what should term an individual as a good one. Since answer to the former question depends a lot on whatever answer, the second one fetch, let me try to answer that.
How can we define a good individual? Though so far I have not come across a clear and concise definition in this regard, I am seeing our world flooded with opinions, advices, or instructions on how to become a good human. Everywhere, those happily issuing such a recommendation are doing so, with reference to their own definition of such a one.
Why it Does not Happen with Other Things
While for everything else, lifeless objects, plants, or animals, there is a definite yardstick, one that that has universal agreement. And the yardstick is contextual in nature, and automatically occurs to one, wherever such an entity’s name comes up. (This is the ultimate gain of having an educated society) The mechanism of making an actual measurement varies, and it differs for each circumstance of its link with human race, however remote. And, whatever conforms to the yardstick being used currently, is the good one. We then adjust ourselves to utilize whatever benefit it could be of. In fact this is the main criterion to judge an individual, that is, how well one is able to get the best services from the things that are in one’s control. Over the years we have been finding such an approach as the above yielding worthwhile results, and continuing with it, while being ready at all times to make any alterations, if current experiences dictate so.
How Commotion Remains with Us
Quite in contrast, while judging humans, an established yardstick plays only a less significant role. Rather than following a well known standard, we choose the one which satisfies the current requirement the best, as the one to use. Then comes another complexity. The additional issues due to memory. Which I think can be reduced to another variable parameter, namely, reputation, which is nothing but an image, derived primarily from the record of past accomplishments that are still in memory. It colours all experiences, mostly boosting the effects of various actions, and, it affects the one judging, and the one being judged, more or less equally.. Like amplifying or playing down the outcome of one’s deeds, or the impression it makes. Now, the ones selected as the good ones are the ones who successfully go through this contextual sieve. Neither good deeds, nor a worthy reputation, can facilitate this without the help of the other. Over the years we have been finding that such an approach as the above leads to frequent skirmishes or other unpleasant experiences. Sill we are continuing with it, while being ready at all times to make any alterations to our life, and let the above approach stay.
..Even After we Try our Best
My doubt is this. Why do we choose this complexity? Why don’t we pick up the habit of judging each one based on one’s inherent worth, and then mould ourselves to extract the desirable? In which case all those engaging in communication will be generally at ease. You see, the side that starts the exchange has already confirmed the appropriateness of the other side, and is already in a receptive state. And for the other side, since the questions that come to them shall be only from their core areas, they shall only be happy to answer them. Needless to say, such a scenario leads to better exchanges and a serene society.
Whereas, where are we? What is preventing us here? We have no ways of establishing suitability of participants, before an exchange actually take place. We keep facing issues of communication constantly, and for which, we have many a dedicated branch of knowledge in existence. Where, instances of inadequate or inappropriate exchanges and the related destructive effects are analysed, mostly for offering corrective solutions. We incorporate those, and perhaps because of the additional complexity that gets introduced, find ourselves in the same boat once again. That calls for more corrections. A vicious circle has come into existence.