They say man is a social animal. There are
two parts to this saying, both of which ring very true.
From the time we are born, there is a web that
society slowly starts wrapping around us. We are largely oblivious and
innocent as kids but as we grow up, we pull that web tighter around us.
And all along, this action is voluntary on many levels.
"What is this web?" you might ask. Well, it's a web of societal norms, obligations, expectations and validation. And we happily fall prey because we are trained to find happiness and satisfaction in the fulfillment of the above.
There is nothing wrong with the idea of a society and it's norms, but when these norms have their genesis in a selfish motive or blind faith, every action performed towards fulfilling that end makes us lose our humanity. It's a gradual process which takes up more than half of our lifetime. Deep inside we all know the error of our ways but it's a selfish world and one has to be selfish to survive. The fact that such type of survival is also the reason for our contentment
paints a morose picture of the animals we have become.
In the circle of life, we get only as much as we give. And so it holds true for humanity too. There are folks tearing our world apart in ways unknown even to themselves and there are a few others who only want to give and to help.
The bad news is, most of us selfishly fall in the former category. The good news is, there is a human being hidden inside all of us. We only need to look.
"What is this web?" you might ask. Well, it's a web of societal norms, obligations, expectations and validation. And we happily fall prey because we are trained to find happiness and satisfaction in the fulfillment of the above.
There is nothing wrong with the idea of a society and it's norms, but when these norms have their genesis in a selfish motive or blind faith, every action performed towards fulfilling that end makes us lose our humanity. It's a gradual process which takes up more than half of our lifetime. Deep inside we all know the error of our ways but it's a selfish world and one has to be selfish to survive. The fact that such type of survival is also the reason for our contentment
paints a morose picture of the animals we have become.
In the circle of life, we get only as much as we give. And so it holds true for humanity too. There are folks tearing our world apart in ways unknown even to themselves and there are a few others who only want to give and to help.
The bad news is, most of us selfishly fall in the former category. The good news is, there is a human being hidden inside all of us. We only need to look.
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